Come to Light
by Etsuke Hansamora
Summary: Fenri Black is Pitch's daughter. Then she sneaks out one night and meets Jack Frost. Fenri doesn't know how to have fun, until she starts hanging out with Jack and others that reveal themselves to her. Is there something between her and the Shadow King or not? And if Death has form, where is the missing Life?
1. Birthday Sneak Out

**My name is Fenri. How do I know? Because my father told me so. His name is Pitch. Pitch Black. Everyone I know is scared of him. And as far as I know, everyone is scared of me, too.**

**Why are people scared? Because my dad is evil. And me? I'm just as bad. We revel in the dark, create nightmares, and seek to destroy the Guardians. They've always gotten in the way of my father, but I'm his secret weapon. Nobody knows I exist.**

**__****There was a knock on my door.**

**"****__****Yes, Daddy?"**

**"****__****Good evening, my little Nightlock. How are you feeling today?"**

**"****__****I'm still a little sleepy," I said, yawning and rubbing my left eye.**

**"****__****Do you feel like you're a year older?"**

**"****__****No. But it's still my birthday, isn't it?"**

**"****__****Yes. You're still five today."**

**"****__****Yay!"**

**"****__****Now get dressed or you'll miss the special birthday party Daddy is throwing you."**

**__****I got out of bed and ran to my closet. I changed out of my pajamas into black knee sport socks, a pair of comfy black basketball shorts with tattered bottoms, a dark grey t-shirt, and a forest green hoodie with a half zip.**

**I opened my eyes to find I'd fallen asleep in my clothes again. An identical outfit as in my dream, but in my current size.**

**"****Wake up, my little Nightlock. The moon is rising."**

**"****Yes, Daddy."**

**I was trapped in a sixteen year old's body. But I'd really been born several hundred years ago. About three centuries, to be exact.**

**I opened my door to find my father waiting by the wall, his hands behind his back.**

**"****What?"**

**He frowned. "Did you really forget? It's your birthday, my little Nightlock."**

**"****Is it? All the days have been blurring together."**

**"****I got you a present."**

**"****What is it?"**

**He brought one hand out from behind his back. A little bat necklace was in his palm.**

**"****Aww, it's so cute!"**

**I turned around and he tied the leather cord behind my neck.**

**"****Why do you still have a hand behind you back?"**

**He brought out his other hand, which held a pair of nunchuks.**

**"****What are these for?"**

**"****Your weapon. It will help you use your powers."**

**"****But how will I figure out how to use them?"**

**"****It'll be natural."**

**"****If you say so," I said, taking the nunchuks and threading them through my belt loop. The weight of them was comforting.**

**"****Now, I made you chocolate chip waffles with whipped cream and caramel syrup on top."**

**"****Woohoo!"**

**I ran past my father to the kitchen. I gobbled down the delicious waffles, which filled me up perfectly.**

**"****Daddy, why can't I ever go outside? I've been stuck here ever since I can remember, and I can remember things from when I was five!"**

**"****Can you?"**

**"****I remember my fifth birthday."**

**"****Can you remember anything else from that time?"**

**"****Well…"**

**"****It would seem Toothiana wants you to turn to their side. Unfortunately, some happy memories aren't going to be enough, are they, little Nightlock?"**

**"****Of course not Daddy."**

**"****That's my girl. Now, run along. I have some work to take care of."**

**I slipped into a shadow, reemerging in the courtyard. There was no roof, only walls around me, but they were two stories high, far taller than I could jump. It was relatively empty, except for my training equipment.**

**I practiced for a couple hours. But, while I was flipping over a hurdle, I noticed a tree above, a little ways from the edge of the opening.**

**"****I wonder…" I murmured to myself.**

**I entered a shadow and reappeared in the tree's dark limbs. I dropped out, feeling the freedom of leaving home for the first time that I could remember.**

**"****Wow…"**

**The moon looked particularly beautiful up here, though I didn't know why.**

**I giggled and ran across the grassy slope. In the distance, snuggled in some trees, I could see lights. I ran faster, towards the lights.**

**I ran under the first tree and rolled, into and out of a shadow, appearing at the edge of the forest where I'd seen the lights. There were buildings around me, and a few people walked around. Real people.**

**"****Hi…" I said shyly to a little girl walking towards me.**

**She walked right through me.**

**"****Oh."**

**I wandered around the little town, hands shoved in my hoodie pocket. I'd heard so much about them from my father. Nobody saw me, or heard my footsteps, or noticed me. I was invisible to them.**

**"****Hey," someone said.**

**I whirled around, but I didn't see anybody. Was it a human?**

**"****Up here," the same voice called.**

**I looked to the sky, but there was nothing.**

**"****You're kind of dumb, aren't you? Look on top of the building next to you."**

**I looked at the building to my left, following it to the roof with my eyes. There, I saw a boy.**

**"****You can see me? And hear me?"**

**"****Yeah. I'm a Guardian. My name is Jack Frost. Who are you?"**

**"****Fenri."**

**"****Aww, come on. You can't tell me your whole name?"**

**"****If I did, this conversation would be over, and one of us would be dead."**

**The boy looked at me curiously.**

**"****You're pretty strange. But you're smarter than you seemed at first, I guess. At least, that look in your eye seems smart."**

**"****I've never been outside my home before."**

**"****Really? In that case, let me show you around. This is my hometown, after all. Welcome to Burgess."**

**Jack floated down from the roof and landed next to me. I could see him a lot better now. He had white spiky hair, sparkly blue eyes, and pale skin. he had a nice smile though.**

**_Wait. He said he was a Guardian. What should I do?_**

**As Jack led the way around, pointing out things here and there, and rambling on about humans, I remained silent.**

**"****Hey, are you okay? You've barely said anything."**

**Jack's concern startled me.**

**"****Um, yeah."**

**"****You sure?" he said, putting a hand on my shoulder.**

**"****Don't touch me!" I said, jerking away.**

**The blackness faded away from his skin. He stared at his hand in confusion.**

**"****Wha...what are you?"**

**"****Just don't touch me…"**

**_That was stupid. If I'd let him just leave his hand there, I could've killed him. But I didn't. What's wrong with me?_**

**"****What would happen...if you touched a human?"**

**"****They would die instantly. My father is the only one who can touch me, but that's because he created me, I suspect. Never having been outside my home, I don't know if anyone else in the world can touch me or not. Obviously, Guardians can't."**

**"****What about your mother?"**

**"****I never knew her."**

**I smacked a hand to my mouth. Why was I saying such things? Why was I talking to this boy at all?**

**"****I'm sorry. So, you were born this way? To have a curse on your touch?"**

**"****Yes. It's probably why my mother is dead."**

**"****You know she's dead? She didn't just leave?"**

**"****My father told me she is dead."**

**"****Who's your father."**

**"****If I told you, you wouldn't talk to me anymore. We'd probably end up fighting."**

**"****Right. So, your family is an enemy of the Guardians, is that what you're saying?"**

**"****Yes."**

**"****Then why did you warn me about touching you?"**

**"****I don't know."**

**Jack looked at me curiously again. I doubted he could see much of my face right now, with my hood up and pulled down low, but he smiled again.**

**"****You're not like your family."**

**"****In that, you are wrong."**

**"****Am I?"**

**I didn't reply.**

**"****Let me see your face."**

**"****No."**

**"****Come, please?"**

**"****No."**

**He silent for a while.**

**"****Alright, come on."**

**"****Where are we going?"**

**"****To the North Pole. The moon brought you here for a reason. And there must be a reason we need a new Guardian. Pitch is dead, so I don't know what threat there could be, but still."**

**"****I'm not a Guardian."**

**"****You're not?"**

**"****No. I am an enemy of the Guardians. I told you that."**

**"****What are you, to humans?"**

**"****The first physical form of the Grim Reaper. I'm Death itself, Jack."**

**"****How have you never left your house and carried out your job as a mythical being?"**

**I pushed up my sleeve ad showed him a charm bracelet. It looked mostly normal, except for one small, glowing, orb shaped charm in the center.**

**"****This let's me see what I need to see. Then, I just touch the orb, and the spirit comes to me."**

**Jack grabbed my arm to look closer at the bracelet, but I yanked my arm away and backed a couple of steps from him. His hand returned to it's normal pale color.**

**"****No touch, remember?"**

**"****Sorry. Could I see it?"**

**"****You have to give it back."**

**"****I will. I'm no thief."**

**I took it off and dropped it in his palm. He studied it. He handed it back.**

**"****You're surprisingly warm."**

**"****Huh?"**

**"****People say that Death is cold, but your skin is actually very warm."**

**"****Oh. I guess."**

**"****Why do you seem so cold in your personality though?"**

**"****Now what are you talking about?" I asked, exasperated. He was so confusing.**

**"****Ah, so you do have emotions."**

**I smirked from under my hood as I rolled my sleeve down again, my bracelet secured snugly on my wrist.**

**"****So, always stuck at home, huh? What do you do for fun?"**

**"****What do you mean?"**

**"****You've never had fun?"**

**"****I don't know. What is fun?"**

**"****Like, being happy because of something you're doing. That activity is fun."**

**"****I guess there was a time when I knew how to have fun, but that left me by the time I was ten."**

**"****No way. You don't know how to have fun?"**

**"****Being Death takes a toll. Seeing so many people die… I doubt you would be very fun or happy either."**

**"****I guess not, huh?"**

**He was quiet for only a moment.**

**"****Looks like it's your lucky day. Grab a hold of my staff."**

**I looked at the wooden pole that he was carrying around with him.**

**Slowly, I reached a hand towards it. Ice shot out, and shadows burst from my hand as a self-defense. Shadows always obeyed my command. They were always there for my comfort.**

**Neither the ice nor the shadows won, but rather the two morphed together, creating ia sculpture like thing. The ice caught the light, reflecting back dark shadows.**

**"****I've only ever seen my ice and another mythical's powers combine like this once. When I was fighting Pitch Black."**

**I stiffened under my hood.**

**"****You're related to him, aren't you? That's why you an enemy of the Guardians."**

**"****He's...my father."**

**Jack's shock and scrambling away from me confirmed my theory. He would never speak to me again, even if we didn't fight.**

**"****No wonder you seem so cold, having him for a father… And it makes sense how you could've ended up being the body for Death, too."**

**"****I'm not the body for Death. I am Death. I'm the Grim Reaper now. The essence that used to be in the universe is now in me. I am all there is."**

**"****Were you there, when I died?"**

**"****When did you die?"**

**"****About three hundred years ago. That's how I became who I am."**

**"****I was just a baby. The shadows took care of everything at the time. It wasn't until I was sixteen that I took over the rolls myself, using the shadows when I need some extra hands."**

**"****The shadows?"**

**I gestured at the sculpture.**

**"****So you don't use black sand and dark energy like your father did?"**

**"****No. Only the shadows."**

**"****What kinds of things can you do with them?"**

**"****They can help me collect souls. I can fight with them, as you can see. They serve as a defense, too. They protect me without my command. I can do a lot of other things, too."**

**"****Show me."**

**I walked over to the shadow a building nearby cast.**

**"****Watch closely."**

**I walked into the shadow, and reappeared on the roof in the shade of a tree.**

**"****It's like you just melted into it."**

**"****Yup. And I can travel anywhere like that."**

**"****Think you can keep up with the wind?"**

**"****Easily."**

**"****Then follow me, since you can't touch me or my staff."**

**The wind carried him into the night. I jumped shadow to shadow, following his form. He was kind of difficult to see because of his blue hoodie and brown pants.**

**He landed next to a pond. I came out of the shadow of a tree and stood next to him.**

**"****This is where I died. I saved my sister."**

**"****You're easy to talk to," I blurted randomly.**

**"****Am I? Then why are you so quiet?"**

**"****I'm not very good at talking. Or at...other creatures."**

**"****You're just not very social, huh? Well, now were going to have some fun. I'm the Guardian of fun, after all. It's what I do best."**

**"****I'm not a human child."**

**"****No. But we're both young for myths. So, come on."**

**He stepped onto the water, and it froze beneath him. He ran around the whole edge, and it all froze over.**

**I stepped cautiously onto the ice. It made the bottoms of my socks wet. I slipped.**

**"****Careful," Jack said as he caught me from behind.**

**I jumped forwards, pushing away from him. I looked back, seeing him stumble. His face was pained, and I could just imagine his skin under his hoodie as it fought to be normal again.**

**I used my shadows to catch him and lay him on the ice gently.**

**"****I'm sorry…"**

**He regained his breath, and managed a painful smile.**

**"****My bad."**

**"****I should go. I should go home. I shouldn't be talking to you in the first place, but I don't want to keep hurting you. You're my first…"**

**"****Friend?" he asked.**

**"****Yeah…"**

**"****Can I see you tomorrow?"**

**"****I doubt it. I might not ever leave home again."**

**"****Please? You're the only mythical I know that's around my age."**

**"****Alright. I'll meet you in Burgess again. It might not be for a couple of nights though."**

**"****Do you have to sleep during the day?"**

**"****Sometimes for a couple of hours, but mostly I just do my job from my room. I only leave my room at night."**

**"****Huh. Oh, by the way, how old are you?"**

**"****I don't know exactly. But I'm trapped in the body of a sixteen year old, the same age I was when I took on the rolls of being Death. So we'll just say I'm sixteen."**

**"****I'm seventeen, then. And what was the occasion for you finally leaving home tonight?'**

**"****It's my birthday. I wanted something different, so I left."**

**"****Happy Birthday."**

**"****Thanks."**

**On that somewhat awkward note, I slipped into a shadow and returned home, straight into my bedroom. I set about to my work. My father came in to check on me once. He had no idea I'd left.**


	2. Not the Devil

**After a nap, I woke up as the sun set. I ate breakfast like usual, and went to the courtyard to train for a bit. I began using the nunchuks my father had given me. They had dark energy imbued into them.**

**"****Powerful. And they serve as a sort of conduit for my powers."**

**I continued to train until the moon had risen to be visible at the edge of the courtyard wall before I went to Burgess again.**

**"****Hello again, Fenri."**

**"****Jack," I acknowledged.**

**"****I brought a friend. I hope you don't mind?"**

**I tugger my hood lower and shoved my hands in my pockets. A hole opened in the ground and a huge rabbit came out of it.**

**"****This is Bunnymund, the Easter Bunny. He's another Guardian."**

**"****Who's this girl, Jack?" Bunnymund asked in an Australian accent.**

**"****Fenri, my new friend."**

**"****And who are you supposed to be, Fenri?" he asked, addressing me.**

**"****The reaper."**

**"****Like, the Grim Reaper? Death?"**

**"****That's right. The essence of Death that resided in the universe now resides in me."**

**"****Hmm," he grunted. He looked me over, taking particular interest in my necklace, the nunchuks, and my hidden face.**

**"****Are you supposed to be another new Guardian?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Why did you bring me here, Jack?"**

**"****So you could meet her."**

**"****I don't want anything to do with Death."**

**"****You won't die from my presence. Just don't touch me."**

**I looked at Jack's hands and saw light bruises from yesterday. So that's what I left behind. I knew there would be some remnant, I just didn't know what.**

**"****What happens if I touch you?"**

**"****Well, if it's for a few seconds, you'll die. If it's just for a moment, your skin, or fur in your case, will turn black, then back to it's original color. Tomorrow, you would wake up with bruises, like Jack has."**

**Bunnymund looked Jack over, noticing his hands. He didn't seem to catch the ones on his neck that could only be seen when he turned his head though.**

**_I hurt Jack pretty badly yesterday._**

**"****I'm sorry," I said.**

**"****Nothing to worry about," Jack said.**

**I pulled my hood ever lower over my face, tugged my sleeves down over my hands, and put a stray piece of hair inside my hood. I was all fidgety with guilt and nerves.**

**"****Hey, my fault anyways. You warned me more than once. So stop with the guilt."**

**Bunnymund's gaze returned to me. I fidgeted more under his stare.**

**"****Bunnymund, you're making her nervous. Cut it out."**

**"****Nice to meet ya, I guess."**

**He thrust a hand out to me. I brought my hands in to my chest, keeping them away.**

**"****What's the matter? You're not scared, are ya?"**

**"****N-no. But, I don't want to hurt you," I said in a tiny voice.**

**"****What's your name again?"**

**"****Fenri."**

**"****Do you have a last name, Fenri?"**

**"****Well, uh…"**

**"****It's best that she doesn't tell you right now," Jack intervened.**

**"****Why not?"**

**"****Just get to know her as herself, first."**

**"****Well, for starters, let's see your face."**

**They both looked at me expectantly, but I didn't move.**

**"****Well?" they said in unison.**

**I backed away a couple steps. I didn't show people my face for a reason…**

**"****Come on, I'll bet you're really pretty," Bunnymund said in an attempt to comfort me.**

**Jack moved forwards until he was right in front of me, then pushed my hood back for me, ignoring it as his skin turned black, and back to itself when he stopped touching me.**

**I stood before them, my face exposed. I had red hair in front and on part of the sides, white in the back and on the rest of the sides, and long black tips. My hair reached my shoulders, and everything under my ears was black. All of it was jagged and edgy in a dangerous looking way. I have very pale skin, soft pink lips, and shadowed, haunted eyes. My pupils are different. One was purple, with silver flecks. The other was green, with black flecks.**

**"****Well, look at that. You do have a pretty face," Bunnymund said. He poked my forehead, and the fur on his finger turned black for a moment. I backed away, pulling up my hood, hiding again.**

**"****Aww, don't be like that, Fenri. Pull your hood back down," Jack said.**

**"****I don't want to hurt you," I whispered.**

**A wall of shadow rose up, separating me from them. Neither could pass through it, fly over it, tunnel under it, or go around it.**

**"****How are you controlling shadows? You're the reaper," Bunnymund commented.**

**"****I don't know. They've just always listened to me."**

**"****Alright, whoever you are, come on out!"**

**"****Who are you talking to? Shadows?"**

**"****No. The one who controls the shadows."**

**I looked at the giant bunny suspiciously before refocusing on the shadows. I looked closer, deeper. I could see something…**

**I grabbed the thing and pulled it out. I was holding somebody's arm. I immediately pulled my hand away.**

**"****Who are you?" I asked.**

**"****Well, congrats, Easter Bunny. I think you're the first to ever realize I'm around. You too, Fenri. I don't think I know anybody else who can see me inside the shadows."**

**I blinked at him, tugged my hood lower, and tugged my sleeves over my hand again.**

**"****You didn't answer my question. Who are you?"**

**"****A friend."**

**"****Look, all I know, is you've been around me my whole life, fighting for me, protecting me. What's your name?"**

**"****Devilan, at your service."**

**"****So, why have you been around me my whole life? Why has no one heard of you?"**

**"****Your mother. She took care of me for some time when I was very young. When you were born, she asked me to look after you. When she died, I swore I would always be there for you."**

**"****Why haven't you ever spoken to me before?"**

**"****I'm a secret, like you. The four of us standing here are the only ones who know I exist, and us four and your father are the only ones who know you exist."**

**"****Why doesn't my father know of you?"**

**"****Your mother asked that I never reveal myself to him. I'm your secret weapon, while you are his."**

**"****Devilan, you knew my mom, and, you were around, when she died. How did it happen? Why is she gone? Is it...is it my fault?"**

**"****No, of course not! Your mother died of a strange illness that she got after after having you. You were born prematurely."**

**"****Maybe that's why I'm only five feet tall."**

**"****It's also the reason for your extremely high metabolism, which is why you're so thin. It's also part of how you became Death."**

**"****What was my mother like?"**

**"****She was an elemental being of negative energy. Your father, of course, is the boogeyman-"**

**"****What! You're Pitch Black's daughter?" Bunnymund exclaimed.**

**"****Yeah."**

**"****Anyways, no, your mother's death isn't your fault, Fenri."**

**"****How old are you?"**

**"****About a century older than you. But, like Jack, I'm always going to be a teenager. Seventeen, to be exact."**

**"****Are you really Pitch's daughter?" Bunnymund asked.**

**"****Yes! Now, shut your jaw, and get over yourself."**

**"****But you are supposed to fight with us."**

**"****I know, I'm an idiot. Shut up."**

**Bunnymund snapped his jaw shut and narrowed his eyes.**

**"****Devilan, are you, like, the devil?" Jack asked.**

**"****No. I know my name has the word devil in it, but I am not he."**

**"****Why haven't you ever revealed yourself to me?" I asked.**

**"****So your father wouldn't hear of it."**

**"****You could have shown yourself by the time I was twenty and just asked if I would keep it a secret!"**

**"****I'm sorry, my lady."**

**"****Don't call me that. It's just...just Fenri, alright?"**

**"****Alright."**

**"****Jack, why did you bring me here?" Bunnymund asked.**

**"****Because Fenri doesn't know how to have fun, so we have to teach her."**

**"****She's so dark. And she seems kind of hopeless."**

**"****Isn't hope your specialty?" Jack hinted.**

**Bunny smirked. He tapped his foot on the ground twice, and all of a sudden Devilan and I were falling down a whole that seemed like a slide. Jack followed us, and Bunny came last.**

**When we hit bottom, all I could see was color. Green plants everywhere, and colorful flowers. Then I looked down. Everywhere was beautiful, except where I sat. There, the grass had turned black.**

**"****You okay, Fenri?" Devilan asked.**

**"****Yeah, I'm alright."**

**With so much light, I could see Devilan clearly now. He had messy brown hair that hung in his eyes, which were unsettlingly yellow. Two small, curved horns came to about two inches above his head, and a black devil's tail flicked around his legs. He had greyish skin in comparison to me. He was wearing a pair of plain yellow tennis shoes, blue jeans, a green shirt, a brown leather jacket, and on his head in front of his horns, a pair of sunglasses.**

**"****Are you sure you're not the devil?" I asked.**

**"****Some might call me a demon, but yes, I'm sure I'm not the devil."**

**"****Are we related? I mean, why did my mother want you to look after me?"**

**"****We are not related, but I do care for you. She knew I'd never betray you, because that would mean betraying her."**

**Jack came down and nearly landed on Devilan's head, but Devilan ducked.**

**Bunny came out of the slide as well, and said, "Welcome to the Warren."**

**"****I don't think I'm so welcome," I said.**

**Bunny turned and looked at me, noticing the blackened grass in a small circle around me.**

**"****Can you fly?"**

**"****I haven't figured out that one yet."**

**"****Well, I don't know what to do then. You can't walk through my home killing everything."**

**"****What if someone of something carried her?" Jack asked thoughtfully.**

**"****No! Please. I don't want to hurt anybody."**

**"****Snow would melt too quickly here, or I'd make a snowflake and use the wind to make you float around."**

**"****I got nothin," Bunny said.**

**"****I can carry you," Devilan said with a smile.**

**"****Without touching me, and without me touching the ground?"**

**"****Just trust me."**

**"****Okay."**

**"****Now, take my hand."**

**"****Are you crazy? I don't want to kill you!"**

**"****You said you'd trust me. So do it."**

**Slowly, I reached my hand towards him.**

**"****For crying out loud," he muttered.**

**He grabbed my hand as fast as a snake.**

**I gasped, but his skin didn't turn black.**

**I pushed my sleeves up and took both of Devilan's hands. I hugged him, I poked his forehead. He stayed his normal shade. Not even the slightest change.**

**"****But, how…?"**

**"****I don't know, I just know it's always been that way. I've touched you while tucking you into bed before, and nothing ever happens."**

**"****Tuck me into bed?"**

**"****When you fall asleep only half under the covers, I tuck you in."**

**"****So, now what?"**

**"****Now, I'm going to carry you on my shoulders."**

**He sat down in front of me.**

**"****Um…"**

**"****Don't worry about it. You're really light. It'll feel like nothing to me."**

**So I sat on his shoulders tentatively, and he stood up rather quickly. I had to hug him around his neck to keep from falling off.**

**"****Thanks for the view. You can sit up now."**

**I sat upright immediately, blushing. I was as red as a tomato. I'd just accidently stuck my boobs in Devilan's face…**

**Devilan laughed.**

**"****Jerk."**

**"****Excuse me, but who's fault was that?"**

**I glared down at him.**

**"****Stop glaring at me like that, alright? It's kinda creepy, especially with your eyes."**

**"****Says the boy with the yellow eyes."**

**"****Hey, you've got one green and black eye, and one purple and silver eye. That takes some getting used to."**

**"****Fine then." I reached up and pulled my hood over my fave again.**

**"****I didn't mean it like that. Your eyes are really pretty. I just don't want you to glare at me, because I don't want you to be angry, alright?"**

**"****Okay."**

**I pulled my hood back down and shook out my hair. I looked down to see Jack and Bunny staring at us weird.**

**"****What?" I asked.**

**"****Well, now that that's sorted, follow me," was Bunny's only reply.**

**Devilan followed, with Jack floating along beside us on his wind.**

**"****So, favorite color?"**

**"****Silver."**

**"****Food?"**

**"****Chocolate chip waffles topped with whipped cream and caramel."**

**"****Place?"**

**"****The courtyard in my house. I train there."**

**"****Train in what way?"**

**"****I'll show you, when we leave this place."**

**"****Are we friends?"**

**"****I don't know. I've only known you for two nights."**

**"****Do you like me so far?"**

**"****As a friend."**

**"****What about me?" Bunny asked from a little ways ahead.**

**"****I trust you."**

**"****And me?" Devilan asked.**

**"****I don't know yet."**

**"****Well, I've only known you your whole life."**

**"****And I've only known you for twenty minutes."**

**He shrugged, which nearly threw me off.**

**"****Am I that light?"**

**"****Yeah."**

**"****How old were you, when you first met me?"**

**"****Well, you were a baby. Tiny little thing. I could hold you in the palm of one hand. I was around one hundred years old. I told you that already. I looked pretty much the same as I do now, except my hair was dyed red."**

**"****Did you hold me while I was a baby?"**

**"****I did. Several times. I took care of you when your mother wasn't feeling well and you were on a day out. After she died, your father started taking better care."**

**"****Maybe that's what it is. Only people who have touched me before I took over my role can touch me."**

**"****So, me and your father?"**

**"****Pretty much."**

**"****Why isn't your hair red anymore?"**

**"****I wanted my natural color back."**

**"****Do you like my hair?"**

**"****It's cute."**

**After another couple minutes of walking, Devilan asked Bunny, "Hey, you mind if I smoke?"**

**"****Not here."**

**"****Fine."**

**"****You smoke?" I asked.**

**"****Yeah."**

**"****Why?"**

**"****Cause I want to. You know, just because I revealed myself to you doesn't mean you can start trying to correct my habits and all that. I've been smoking since I was twenty. I'm not about to change that."**

**I looked down at his head and stuck my tongue out. He couldn't see, but it made me happy.**

**"****So, Fenri, what made the universe choose you to become Death?" Jack asked.**

**"****I don't know why I was chosen."**

**"****Can't you, like, talk to the universe?"**

**"****It's not easy to learn new skills when you don't have a role model. I'm figuring things out as I go. By the way, Devilan. If you're the one who's been controlling the shadows-"**

**"****I'm the shadow. I'm the Shadow King."**

**"****Okay, but what are my powers, then?"**

**"****Well, there's the touch of Death thing, and the nunchuks serve as a conduct, you're right about that. But, while I control the shadows, you add something to them. Cold."**

**"****But that's already Jack's job."**

**"****No, he has frost, snow, ice, freezing water. You have pure cold, a type of energy based off the pure emotion and feeling of cold."**

**"****What do you mean?"**

**"****It's not the shadows that stop people from passing, it's your freezing cold. You have a cold personality, you have a cold energy that resides in you. You are physically and mentally meant to be cold as Death."**

**"****Then why am I so warm?"**

**"****Because you fight against that. You're trying not to be a cold, emotionless, corpse like entity."**

**"****Could that really happen to me?"**

**"****Maybe. But I'll teach you a trick later to keep that from ever happening, even if you do stop fighting it."**

**I looked around, and realized some of the boulders seemed to be moving, and some of the flowers were spraying something…**

**"****Not very busy, with Easter having just passed, but you should see this place a couple days before hand."**

**"****I've never celebrated any holidays. Only my birthday."**

**"****Well, that's hardly surprising, considering your father. But now that Pitch is gone, you can celebrate with us."**

**I looked down at Devilan. He returned my gaze, and shook his head ever so slightly.**

**"****That sounds like a lot of fun," I said, forcing in a little too much cheerfulness. Neither Jack, nor Bunny looked at me weird. Devilan did, though.**

**He rolled his eyes and focused back on the path we were following.**

**"****Hey Bunny, where are we going?"**

**"****Just taking you on a little tour."**

**"****Come on, Kangaroo. How is this fun?" Jack asked.**

**"****Did you just call me a kangaroo again?"**

**"****Then make something fun happen."**

**Bunny glared at Jack for a moment before grinning.**


	3. Egg Hunt

"Alright. We'll do an egg hunt, even though it's not Easter. Let's say, one hundred eggs?"

A hill of little eggs poured out of a tunnel and the flowers went to work, painting, patterning, decorating.

As each egg finished, it vanished.

"Where are they going?"

"They're hiding."

"And then what?"

"Then you go find them. Devilan can play, too. I doubt he's ever done an egg hunt."

"I never said I wanted to," he muttered.

"You don't have much choice. You're carrying Fenri."

He gave a small sigh.

"I don't have to do the hunt, if you're just wanting to go," I said quietly.

"No, it's not you. I just wish we could do this someplace else, so we could both look separately and cover more ground. We have one hundred eggs to find."

All of the eggs were hidden by now.

"Well, let's start in that flower," I said, pointing to a particularly big tulip.

Devilan knelt down and opened the flower some. We both peeked in and saw a blue egg.

"Found one!"

"Good eye. Where else do you want to look?"

"How about in that tree?"

He stood under the tree and I looked up.

"There's an orange one there," I said, pointing to a higher branch.

"I can't reach it."

"I'd better not touch it…"

Devilan looked at the ground for a moment. He picked up a very leafy ended branch that was about as thick as a quarted is around. He pushed the branch up into the tree and caught the egg in the branch as if it were a nest.

"Good thinking, Devilan."

He smiled at me before letting the egg gently roll into our huge basket that Bunny had handed us.

We gathered several more eggs. Most of them I guessed a hiding place for. A few Devilan came up with. We finally ended up with ninety-three eggs.

"Just seven more."

We found two more hiding as rocks in a stream.

"The last five are extra tricky, and special. They're made out of scales, and they have prizes in them. Something special to each person."

"Why is there five? There are only four of us."

"It won't take you long to figure out after you find a couple."

I had no idea where else to look. I hung my head, noticing a strange weight in my hoodie. I reached in my pocket and pulled out a beautifully decorated egg. It looked almost like a dragon egg, the way the scales were layered and painted. It was a deep, bright yellow. It reminded me of a wolf's eyes, and of Devilan.

"I found one."

"Where was it?"

"My pocket."

"Good. We'll keep the special ones there."

I put the egg back in my pocket and searched with a new determination. I found one resting in the crook of Jack's staff, which was leaning against a tree. It was bright green, reminding me of Bunny, for no reason in particular. I put it safely in my pocket with the other one.

"Um, I found one?" Devilan said, sounding really confused.

"Where?"

He flicked his tail forwards. Clutched in a loop of his tail, was a purple egg, with silver spots.

"You didn't notice you were holding something in your tail earlier?"

"I had no clue."

He handed it up to me, and I put it with the other two.

"Only two more," I said.

We finally found one strapped to Bunny's back by his boomerang carrier. It was deep, icy blue. It made me think of Jack.

We were next to a fountain when Devilan tripped on a raised tree root. He fell onto his stomach, his foot still caught. I fell onto the hard concrete surrounding the fountain.

"Ow…"

Devilan groaned and rolled over onto his back. He got up fairly quickly after that. I hadn't moved yet.

"Are you okay, Fenri?"

"I don't know. My knee hurts."

Devilan put his hands under my arms and lifted me up. He put me on the edge of the fountain and knelt down to look at my knee.

"You scraped it up."

He reached inside his jacket and started hunting around for something.

"I know I always carry one, in case something like this happened…"

Finally, he pulled out a little rectangle of paper.

He split the paper in two, and I realised it had only been a rapper. Inside it was a rectangle with rounded sides, and a tan color.

Devilan took two little covers off one side and stuck the rectangle to my knee, over the scrape.

"What is that?"

"A band aid. It'll help keep it from getting infected or anything like that."

He smirked.

"What?"

"Who ever heard of the Grim Reaper getting a scraped knee, anyway?"

I giggled. Then Devilan leaned forward and kissed my knee over the band aid.

"To make it feel better," he said. His smile wasn't mocking or sarcastic now. Just a soft smile.

_He's really kind of cute…_

Then I remembered a time when I was really young.

"_**Daddy, kiss the booboo better," I told him after he put a band aid on my elbow.**_

_**He kissed it.**_

"_**There. Now my little Nightlock is all better."**_

_**I smiled at him.**_

_**Why don't we go get ice cream? And be careful this time. Don't run too fast."**_

"_**Okay, Daddy."**_

So, it was really something meant for children. But Devilan doing it was still cute.

He threw the trash away then came back. He knelt in front me, and kissed my knee again.

"Just to make sure," he said.

My heart skipped a beat inside my chest.

"Devilan…"

"Yes?"

"Thank you. You've looked after me all of these years, even though I never even knew you were there."

He froze as he was getting up to sit next to me.

"Yeah. It's no big deal, really."

"Why do you sound so sad all of a sudden?"

"Well, you don't normally tell anyone your feelings like that. When you do, it makes me kind of sad that you don't let others see just how…"

"Just how?"

He sat beside me.

"Just how amazing you are."

Devilan's face started inching closer to mine when Jack startled me.

"Hey, Fenri!"

I jumped and fell back into the fountain.

Devilan took his jacket off and stuck his hand in. He grabbed my hand and pulled me back out.

_Wow...Devilan looks really strong._

"Th-thank you."

"Of course."

He dried his hand on his jeans and shrugged back into his jacket.

"Come on," he said, offering me his back.

I got on his shoulders again and he started walking away. Then I saw something glitter in the fountain.

"Devilan, wait. I think I might have dropped one of the eggs."

He paused, and turned back to the fountain.

"Can't hurt to double check, I suppose."

I searched the water, since I was already soaked. Devilan's jacket was getting wet from me being on his shoulders…

"Hey, do you think you can put your jacket somewhere? I'm kind of getting it wet…"

He took it off and tied it around his waist instead. He was still really cute. Maybe kind of hot.

Hey, I found it!" I said, holding up a green egg with black specks.

"That's a new one. Check your pocket and make sure you have all the others."

I had the other four, as well.

"We've found all the eggs."

"Fenri!" Jack called.

I nearly screamed, but managed to hold my tongue.

"Did you need something, or are you trying to scare me for no reason?"

"I was just gonna tell you I figured out the special eggs."

"Did you?"

"Yeah. Look at the colors of the eggs. They represent the person."

I looked at the five special eggs. My eyes refocused on the yellow one that reminded me so much of Devilan.

_His eyes…_

This one is yours," I said, handing it to him.

"How do you know?"

"Your eyes."

He refocused on the egg, realising what color it was.

"Oh, wow. That's pretty cool. That means these two are yours, one for each eye color."

He hand me the purple, silver spotted one and the green, black flecked one.

"And this one is yours, Jack," I said, handing him the blue one.

"Come on. Let's go give the last one to Bunnymund."

Rather than carry me on his shoulders like he had been so far, he picked me up in his arms. I couldn't help the blush that spread over my cheeks. I reached back and pulled my hood up.

"What?" Devilan asked. He hadn't seen my red cheeks.

"Nothing. I just prefer having my hood up. I feel too exposed. I don't like other's seeing my face."

He looked like he wanted to say something, but kept his mouth shut.

"Bunny," I said his name, thrusting the egg at him.

"Figured it out, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Aren't you going to see what inside?"

I tapped a scale right on the very top of the egg that matched my left eye, the green and black one. The top half disappeared in the bottom half, revealing three chocolates. I took them out and tapped the outside of the shell. The top half rose back up into it's place.

"The eggs are amazing."

"Taste the chocolate, then."

I looked at it suspiciously.

"It's not poisoned or anything like that, I promise. But it's really good."

I took the tiniest nibble out of a corner. It was orange flavored, sweet and delicious. I forced myself to swallow.

"Do you have anything more bitter?"

"You don't like sweet things?"

"It's not that."

"But your favorite thing to eat…"

"Dark chocolate, and the whipped cream and caramel are homemade. Specifically because I can't stand the sweetness."

"Alright. Would you like some of my orange dark chocolate instead?"

"If you have it."

He pulled a small piece of bark out of nowhere and handed it to me, trading it for the regular chocolate.

I tasted it. It was better, but the orange was just too sweet.

"I'm sorry. I just can't eat it."

Bunny frowned, saddened.

"Try mine instead," Devilan said, taking the orange from me and giving me something else.

He took one bite of the orange.

"This is delicious. It kinda makes me think of sherbet."

I nibbled on what Devilan had given me. I could easily taste the more bitter dark chocolate, but there was a hint of vanilla and it had a minty aftertaste.

"Oh, that's really good. What is it?"

"Vanilla dark chocolate with a drop of mint extract," Bunny said.

"Could I have some more?"

"Sure."

He loaded up the green and black egg and I stuffed it in my pocket, getting out the purple and silver one instead.

Inside that one, I found the tiniest voodoo doll ever, with a little loop at the top. I looked like a tiny sea monster, in a human type shape.

I didn't say anything about it, just stuck it back in the egg. I'd have to find a way to start carrying it around.

An idea popped into my head and I took the voodoo doll out again, looking at the top again. Not a loop, but a clasp. It was a charm. I pushed up my right sleeve, revealing my charm bracelet. I put the voodoo doll on the chain link right next to the one the orb. I also had a frog, a bat, a scythe, a mummy, and a Cerberus charm. The bat was from my father, and he had told me the mummy was from my mother. The Cerberus had come from my master, Hades, as well as the bracelet itself and only original charm, the orb.. I'd picked the scythe up at a goth store. I couldn't remember where the frog came from.

"Devilan, where did I get this frog charm?"

"I gave you a secret present on your birthday one year. Left it as anonymous. It was that charm. All the other charms are kind of dark and gloomy. I wanted to give you something fun and colorful."

I looked at the little frog again. It was red, with blue eyes. I smirked.

I could feel Devilan's gaze on me as he waited for me to show some kind of reaction. He seemed disappointed when he didn't notice any.

"So, now what, Bunny?"

"Back to the surface. Or I can take you to North's."

"Who is North?"

"Santa Claus," Jack explained.

"I'm not a Guardian."

"I'll say," Bunny said with a snort.

"You don't have to be a Guardian. North should meet you," Jack said.

"No."

"Do you want to go home, then?"

"I should. My father will probably be looking for me by now."

"You gonna find your own way back?" Bunny asked.

"Yes. You're already home. We can leave from here, though."

"I'll use the tunnels. See ya, Bunny. Hope to see you again tomorrow, Fenri."

Jack flew away on the wind.

"Ready to go?" Devilan asked.

I nodded slightly, and he stepped into a shadow. We stepped out in my room.

"Now what would you like to do?"

"Well, first, you can put me down now. And you'd better make yourself scarce, at least in visibility."

I could see Devilan's face go red as he set me down.

"Thanks for carrying me, though."

"No problem. You're really light."

I rolled my sleeve down, feeling the chill draft in my room. I looked around the dark room, noticing a flicker of movement in the shadow my bed cast. So that's where Devilan was.

There was a knock on the door.

"Yes, Daddy?"

"What are you doing, my little Nightlock?"

"Working."

I took my bracelet off and laid it on the bed, touching to orb so I could see. A sixteen year old looking girl had just died of a disease. I reaped her bright, pure soul and guided it to Heaven.

"Do you want mouse stew?"

"Not hungry."

Most of the time, this was true. I ate very little. Some nights, I went without eating at all.

"Eat something," Devilan whispered from his shadow.

"Are you sure?"

"Maybe I'll have some cheese and crackers later."

"If that's what you want, I can bring you some."

"I'm not hungry right now."

"If you're not hungry, you're not hungry. I'll get some cheese and crackers out, and keep the stew warm, in case you change your mind later."

His foot steps left me.

"What do you want to do?" Devilan asked, his voice echoing around the room.

"Do some work, then go to bed."

"What time is it?"

I pointed at the clock on my nightstand, looking at it as well. It was already four o'clock in the morning. Sunrise wasn't far away.

"Bed at six?"

"Yeah."

I worked for an hour and a half. After that, I got up to stretch sore muscles.

"Why don't you take a bath?" Devilan asked.

I was startled, not having heard his voice in a while and having forgotten he was there.

"That sounds nice, actually…"

"I'll start the water for you, if you like."

"Thank you."

Devilan took shape and went into my bathroom.

I dug the eggs out of my pocket and set them on my dresser. For now, until I had an item I needed to hide,they would serve as a nice decoration.

I went to the bathroom, ready to relax in the nice hot water. I never needed baths or showers, because I didn't sweat and filth only accumulated on my clothes, never on my porcelain like skin. That was how pale I was.

The bath was relaxing and pleasant. I nearly fell asleep in the water. When I noticed I was trying to drift off, I got out.

I fell forward onto my bed, crawling to my pillows, and getting comfortable. I slept on my stomach. I had a king sized bed, but only ever used one side, and my feet were always far from the bottom edge.

I tossed and turned. I tried rolling onto either side, my back, and returned to my stomach. I changed which way my head faced. I counted sheep. Nothing helped. I couldn't sleep today, even though I was exhausted.

"Can't sleep?" Devilan asked quietly.

"No."

"Do you want me to come up there with you?"

"No."

"Do you want me to sing you a lullaby?"

I thought about that one for a moment.

"Yes," I whispered.

_"__This what I bought you, this you can keep. This is what I brought, you may forget me. I promise to depart just promise one thing. Kiss my eyes and lay me to sleep. This is what I brought you, this you can keep. This is what I brought, you may forget me. I promise you my heart, just promise to sing. Kiss my eyes and lay me to sleep. Kiss my eyes and lay me to sleep. This is what I thought, I thought you'd need me. This is what I thought ,so think me naive. I'd promise you a heart, you'd promise to keep. Kiss my eyes and lay me to sleep. Kiss my eyes and lay me to sleep. Kiss my eyes and lay me to sleep."_

I knew the lyrics. The song was 'Kiss My Eyes and Lay Me to Sleep', by AFI.

Devilan's voice was gentle, sweet, and kind of husky. I was asleep before he finished his song.


	4. Training

**When I woke up the next night, I was surprised I'd slept so long. I looked around for Devilan, and saw that he was still asleep in the shadow of the bed. Was he sleeping on the floor, or in the Shadow Realm?**

**The Shadow King didn't stir as I got up and did my morning routine. Brush my teeth, comb my hair, make my bed, and take care of a little morning work. Today I added waking up Devilan to the list.**

**"****Devilan, wake up." I shook his shoulder.**

**"****Hm? What?" he asked in a sleepy murmur.**

**"****Time to get up."**

**"****Five more minutes."**

**"****No."**

**"****Yes."**

**"****No. Up."**

**He rubbed at an eye sleepily, sitting up on his elbows. It was strange, seeing him only half out of the shadow.**

**"****Does this count as up?"**

**"****No. Open your eyes."**

**He yawned, blinked a few times, and rubbed the sleep away. His yellow eyes focused on me.**

**"****Good morning."**

**"****Morning. Are you hungry?"**

**"****Sure. What are we having today?"**

**"****French toast sticks."**

**He got up and followed me out of the room, disguising himself in the shadows as we headed for the kitchen. I sat in the darkest chair.**

**"****Good morning, my little Nightlock. You're up early."**

**"****Slept good."**

**"****That's good to hear. How hungry are you this morning?"**

**"****Seven, please."**

**"****Seven? My that's quite a lot for you. Almost an actual meal."**

**I shrugged. My father glanced back at me. It wasn't a look of concern I saw, but a smile.**

**"****Hood down at the table."**

**"****Why?"**

**"****So I can see my daughter's face and pretty smile."**

**I didn't make any move to take my hood off.**

**"****Hood off, I said, Fenri."**

**I sighed and rolled my eyes before reaching up and yanking my hood back.**

**"****Thank you."**

**I said nothing. When I wasn't curious about something, I was a person of few words.**

**"****Come, now. Don't give me that look."**

**I turned my gaze to the floor. I could see Devilan hiding in my shadow.**

**My father set a plate in front of me. It looked like a meal for three of me, but I knew Devilan ate more than I did.**

**My father finished ten before I'd finished one.**

**"****I thought you were hungry?"**

**"****I don't gobble my food like you."**

**He gave me a soft smile.**

**"****Well, excuse me, then."**

**"****You should rest, Daddy," I said suddenly, just before he left the kitchen.**

**"****I have been. Don't worry, my little Nightlock. I will beat the Guardians when my power has returned to me."**

**He left, and I immediately reached back and pulled my hood on, particularly down low, so my entire face was covered.**

**"****Aw, now I can't see your pretty face."**

**"****You're hungry, aren't you?"**

**Devilan rose up out of my shadow and sat in the chair adjacent to mine.**

**I finished my first french toast stick and grabbed a second. I pushed the rest of the plate to Devilan.**

**"****You really should eat more."**

**I finished my second. "Not hungry."**

**I sat there, waiting for Devilan to finish. I loaded the dishwasher with the last couple days of dishes, and ran it. It was somewhat full for once.**

**"****Now what?"**

**"****Training."**

**I stepped into a shadow with Devilan. I stepped out alone into the courtyard.**

**"****You can come too. You've been training with me all this time. You should get your body in good condition, not just your use of magic."**

**"****Alright. I'll give it a shot."**

**He followed me through my obstacle course, which was rearranged each day while I slept. By whom, I didn't know. But this method ensured I could do the movements in any form, not just in certain circumstances.**

**Devilan had a little trouble on the obstacles that required more flexibility, but on the ones for speed and evasive maneuvers, he easily kept up with me.**

**"****How fast can you really go?"**

**"****Are you gonna time me?"**

**"****Yes." I went to a rack of baskets and took a stopwatch out of one. Devilan went back to the start of the course.**

**"****Three, two, one, go!"**

**He shot off the line as I hit the button.**

**It was hard to believe he was so fast, but I stopped the watch when he reached the end.**

**"****One minute eleven. That's amazing, considering it's a two minute course."**

**"****Alright, well, how fast can you go through it?"**

**I tilted my head to the side in thought. I didn't know. I hadn't timed myself in ages. My father hadn't watched me training in ages.**

**"****I don't know. My old time is one minute forty-two."**

**"****Beat it, and then we can go meet the others."**

**"****I have to beat it before we leave?"**

**"****Yep. Ready?"**

**We traded places, me at the start, him with the watch.**

**"****Three, two, one, go!"**

**I sprinted, climbed and jumped down the inflatable, dodged through the slalom, leapt over a series of hurdles, used the row of rings hanging from the ceiling to do a series of flips, slid under and jumped over a series of horizontal poles, climbed a wall, ziplined down, and sprinted to the finish.**

**"****One minute forty-seven. Come on, Fenri, put some effort into it."**

**I rolled my eyes but went back to the start.**

**"****Three, two, one, go!"**

**I ran hard, going as fast I could through each obstacle. I didn't hold back, but used all the strength and speed I'd worked for since my sixteenth birthday.**

**I was done before I realised.**

**Devilan's jaw was hanging when he stopped the watch.**

**"****What? What time did I get?"**

**"****One minute nine," he said in awe.**

**I blinked in surprise. That was quite an improvement from five years ago. That was the last time my father had timed me.**

**"****You know, if you got an actual watch instead of this necklace thing, you could time yourself whenever you wanted."**

**"****I'll think about it."**

**I went to a different part of the courtyard. There were several exercising machines and tools. I went to the dangling punching bag.**

**"****Didn't I say we could go once you beat your time?"**

**"****Training comes first."**

**I took my charm bracelet off, putting it in my pocket. I put on a pair of brass knuckles and started beating up the bag.**

**When I'd finished, I was short of breath, my legs were too energised, and my knuckles were bloody from the force.**

**"****Dang. You need hand wraps or something."**

**"****I only like white in my hair."**

**"****Well, I'll find you a different color, but you really need wraps."**

**"****If I really wanted them, I'd go find some myself."**

**"****Your knuckles are all bloody. You gotta do something."**

**"****I'm fine."**

**Devilan sighed in frustration. When I looked over at him, he was gone. Off to find hand wraps for me.**

**I got a bottle of water from the kitchen, gulping some down while I regained my breath. I washed some of the blood off my hands, but it just kept coming. I bandaged up my knuckles for the time being. It would work until they were healed.**

**I went back to the courtyard, in the same area as the punching bag, was a stand alone dummy, made out of the same stuff as punching bags. I started kicking the crap out of it.**

**When I was done I gulped more water and sat down for a moment. I looked at the nunchuks at my waist. They really weren't my style. I wasn't a flashy type of person. I decided to talk to my father about it while Devilan was still gone.**

**"****Daddy!" I called, walking down one of the many hallways in our home.**

**"****Yes, my little Nightlock?" he asked from behind me.**

**I turned around. As far as I could tell, he'd been following me since I'd entered the hallway. This was the West wing, after all. I wasn't allowed to be in this place, technically.**

**"****I was wondering. Does it have to be nunchuks? They're not my type of weapon."**

**"****What? Would you prefer a staff?"**

**"****No."**

**"****A sword?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Bow and arrow?"**

**"****No."**

**"****What, then?"**

**"****A scythe."**

**"****You just want to go right along with people's mental images of you?"**

**"****No. But it is a natural weapon for me."**

**"****It's too slow. It won't keep up with your speed."**

**"****A pair of sickles?"**

**"****Farming tools?"**

**"****You won't allow a scythe. Sickles are kind of like short handled scythes. They'll work."**

**"****As you wish. I'll transfer the energy as soon as I have your chosen weapons."**

**"****Thank you, Daddy."**

**"****Of course, my little Nightlock."**

**"****Why do you call me that?"**

**"****Nightlock is a sweet, dark colored berry. But, it's deadly. I thought it was such a fitting nickname for you."**

**"****I'm not sweet," was all I said before moving past him and heading back to the courtyard.**

**Devilan was waiting.**

**"****Here you go. A pair of hand wrap gloves. All you have to do is slip them on."**

**"****My knuckles have to heal first."**

**I took the gift and put them in my pocket.**

**"****Do you want to go to meet with Jack and Bunnymund, then?"**

**"****Yeah."**

**I stepped into a shadow, and the two of us reappeared in the tree.**


	5. Fate in the Cards

**"****Devilan, why do you keep taking care of me? It must be obvious to you by now that I can take care of myself."**

**"****Well, believe it or not, besides your mother asking me to take care of you, I have my own reasons to look out for you."**

**"****Like what?"**

**"****For one thing, I genuinely care about you. Two, I never break a promise, and never go back on my word. And above all of it, I have nothing else to do. As the Shadow King, my only requirement is be around for Halloween. So hanging around you is putting me out of my misery."**

**"****Do the humans see you? Can they talk to you?"**

**"****No. I'm invisible to them, too."**

**"****Do you have your own home?"**

**"****Of course."**

**"****Do you ever stay there?"**

**"****I haven't been there since I started watching out for you."**

**"****Oh. I'm sorry."**

**"****What are you sorry for?"**

**"****You haven't seen your home, your family, anything, for three centuries, all because of me."**

**"****I don't have a family. You're the closest I've got. And this has become my home."**

**"****I want to see your house though."**

**He snorted.**

**"****What?"**

**"****Going over to a guy's place. Especially a guy like me. You think that's safe?"**

**"****You wouldn't do anything to me."**

**"****Don't tempt me like that."**

**I glared at him.**

**"****Alright, alright. I'll take you to see my house. Just give me a few days to clean it up."**

**I smiled.**

**He made a tch noise.**

**"****Now what?"**

**"****Nothin. Was just thinking how easy it is for you to get me to do things."**

**"****Only because you love me," I said with a hint of sarcasm to my flat voice.**

**He muttered something.**

**"****What?"**

**"****Nothin. We goin, or not?"**

**We dropped out of the tree into a shadow, appearing at the edge of Burgess. I heard a sound and looked over at Devilan. He was lighting a cigarette.**

**"****What?" he asked, seeing me staring at him.**

**I looked away without commenting.**

**"****I told you yesterday. You still seem surprised. What's up?"**

**Jack floated down on the wind.**

**"****Jack's up," I whispered in his ear.**

**He chuckled under his breath.**

**"****Hey guys. Ready for more fun?"**

**I nodded.**

**"****Come on. You can open up to me. You don't have to be so stonily silent. We're friends, aren't we?" Jack said, offering me his hand. He had a grin on his face, and his eyes looked mischievous.**

**I glanced at Devilan out of the corner of my eye. He was all tense and was glaring at Jack's hand like it disgusted him.**

**I poked Jack's palm, a ripple of black coloring his skin for a moment.**

**"****Yeah, we're friends," I said, watching Devilan. He had a smirk seeing my touch revoke Jack.**

**"****Hey guys, sorry I'm late. North wanted a word," Bunny said as he arrived from one of his holes in the ground.**

**"****What did he want?" I asked, my voice cold.**

**"****Well, he asked...if I'd had any signs of Pitch still being around."**

**"****Did you tell him about me?"**

**"****I didn't have a choice. The moon would have told him if I hadn't."**

**"****So what does he want to do with me?"**

**"****He wants to meet you. Then he'll decide."**

**"****He'll have me reap myself. Except that's not possible. So he'll try to kill me. Send my soul, my powers, back into the universe."**

**"****He won't kill you. He knows Jack and I approve of you."**

**"****Where is he? I want to get this over with."**

**"****The North Pole, of course. Come on, I can take you."**

**A portal appeared in the air next to us.**

**"****Or, North will use a snow globe to get you there."**

**I let out a sigh. Then I walked in, Devilan behind me. Jack and Bunny followed us.**

**"****We didn't arrive where I expected. We were in the middle of what looked like a busy factory. Yetis were all over the place. In the very middle was a huge globe, with a big man in red next to it. He turned around, a cheery smile on his face.**

**"****Ah, my guests. Hello Bunny, Jack. Devilan, long time no see, boy."**

**"****What?" he asked, the cigarette hanging in his dropped jaw. He looked entirely confused.**

**"****Surprised?"**

**"****How do you know me?"**

**"****Melissa talked about you all the time. I saw you once while you were fast asleep."**

**Devilan took a step back, weary of the big man. He had a slight frown and his eyes were suspicious.**

**"****However, the reason we are all here is you, young lady. Welcome to the pole, Fenri Black."**

**I pulled my hood lower over my face. All anyone looking at me would be able to see would be my mouth and chin.**

**"****Who knew Death was a girl? Were you a girl in the universe, as well, I wonder?"**

**I shrugged. His guess was as good as mine. I didn't remember my time as being part of the universe. It was a past life.**

**"****Well, come, come. You must meet Sandy and Tooth."**

**I looked back at Jack.**

**He smiled reassuringly, but it didn't calm my fears. I was quickly finding out I wasn't a people person, being surrounded as I was in this workshop.**

**We followed North up two floors. It was quieter here, and there were no others here. There was a globe up here, as well.**

**Golden sand came in through the windows. The three Guardians fell asleep as it touched them. Devilan and I were left alone.**

**The Sandman came in, golden sand whips in both hands. One of the whips arced towards me. I dodged around it, glaring at the Sandman from under my hood. He looked determined as he began a full on assault.**

**"****Devilan, get out of here!" I called as I dodged and weaved passed the whips.**

**I looked around for him, not noticing a whip coming towards me as I looked up on the globe at Devilan. The sharp pain of the cut across my cheek brought my attention back to the one sided fight. I continued dodging about. I did my best to avoid hitting the sleeping Guardians, but that wasn't working so well. I could feel a drop of blood trailing down my face from the cut.**

**The room filled with shadows that surrounded Sandman. his whips didn't affect them in the least. He couldn't escape.**

**"****I am the Shadow King!" Devilan yelled as more shadows continued to pile around Sandman.**

**A panicked look had taken over Sandman's face.**

**"****Devilan, stop it. Don't kill him."**

**"****Did he hurt you?"**

**"****No, I'm fine," I said, even as my cheek stung.**

**The shadows left the Sandman, instead surrounding me in a protective barrier. I was completely surrounded in the welcome darkness.**

**Devilan jumped off the globe and stood next to me. Sandman's whips vanished, the sand blowing away in the wind.**

**Images of sand appeared over Sandman's head. Very angry images.**

**"****You attacked me, let's remember."**

**He rolled his eyes and created the images over his head again, this time slower.**

**"****Yes. I'm Pitch Black's daughter. Fenri Black."**

**More images appeared. He was asking about my mother.**

**"****Her name was Melissa. She was an elemental being, made of pure negative energy."**

**More images.**

**"****I don't remember her. She died when I was a baby. I was raised by my father. And Devilan here has always looked after me."**

**Bunny began to stir.**

**Sandman's images came faster. He wanted our talk to be private.**

**"****My father raised me to hate and fight Guardians. Everything I've been doing the last few days has been strictly against that."**

**He created images of a big fight between my father, Devilan and I against the Guardians.**

**"****No. I won't let that happen. I will not participate in a war. Death does not take sides."**

**Sandman thought for a moment, then held a hand out to me, one word of sand over his head.**

**_Friends?_**

**I nodded. He walked closer to me, his hand still out.**

**I backed away as Devilan's shadows dissipated. I tripped over somebody, catching myself on a railing. If I'd fallen over the railing, I would've fallen two storied to the workshop below.**

**Sandman looked at me curiously, and I realised my hood had fallen back.**

**"****Uh…"**

**He held a finger on his other hand to his lips and floated to me. He reached his hand towards mine. I jerked away.**

**"****You can't touch me. I don't want to hurt you."**

**He rolled his eyes again and grabbed my hand. Each particle of sand turned black on his hand and began spreading up his arm.**

**I yanked my hand away, and Sandman's sand returned to it's golden color.**

**"****Ugh, why do I feel trampled?" Bunny asked.**

**I reached back and I pulled my hood down low over my face. Sandman went back to the others.**

**"****You said he didn't hurt you," Devilan said in a controlled voice.**

**"****He didn't."**

**He yanked my hood back again.**

**"****What do you call this, then?"**

**"****It's nothing. I'm fine."**

**Devilan's face came strangely close to mine, then he licked away the blood the was working it's way down my cheek. He licked the cut, too. He took out another band aid and put it over the mark on my cheek, stuffing the trash in his pocket with his free hand. The other held his cigarette away from us.**

**"****To make it feel better," Devilan whispered. He kissed me on the cheek. Then he pulled my hood back up for me and walked away like nothing had happened, sticking his cigarette back in his mouth..**

**My heart wouldn't stop racing.**

**"****I'm sorry I'm late! I just put away the final tooth from last night," a fairy looking creature said as she flew in through the window. Everyone was up again by that time. None of them had noticed Devilan and me. They'd all been too busy questioning Sandman.**

**"****Fenri, meet Sandy and Tooth. Sandy is-"**

**"****Sandman, and Tooth, the Tooth Fairy."**

**"****Yes. How did you know?"**

**"****My father speaks of Sandman a lot. Toothiana and I both work with children, though my job is not so pleasant as hers. I've seen her around."**

**"****Well, if you go by that, you should've seen all of us around."**

**"****I try not to take lives on holidays, especially in person. I haven't seen Sandman until today. We always seem to be in different places."**

**"****And you've already met Bunny and Jack. I am North. You may know me as Santa Claus."**

**"****Yeah. Bunny explained."**

**"****And you are Fenri Black, Pitch Black's daughter."**

**"****That's right."**

**"****Oh, so you're Fenri? I've heard strange things about your teeth. Is it true that you never have to brush because no particles can stick to them? And do they really shine like the moon?"**

**"****I don't know. I've never looked at my teeth before."**

**"****Don't you have a mirror? And you must smile into it sometimes."**

**"****I'm not sure what a mirror is, but I don't smile very often. It's not in my nature."**

**"****A bit frosty, aren't you?"**

**"****I'm not exactly what you'd call fond of people."**

**"****So, North, is she going to be a new Guardian?"**

**"****No. How can Pitch Black's daughter be a Guardian?"**

**"****Even if you wanted Death on your side, Death does not take sides."**

**North shrugged.**

**"****So,what shall I do with you then?"**

**"****Leave me be."**

**"****But what if you try to kill us? I can't just leave you to end the Guardians."**

**"****If I wanted you all dead, I'd only have to touch you for a few seconds. That isn't my purpose. Unless it is your time, your life will not be ended by me."**

**"****Then what do you want?"**

**"****A purpose. I have work, of course, but what else am I meant for? Why give Death a form? Why am I not still part of the universe? A purpose. I must have a purpose."**

**"****So, you need to be given a purpose, or you need to discover your purpose?"**

**"****Perhaps both. Perhaps neither. I may have found it already without realising. Or I may need to be given one. Or I may need to go discover one. I don't know."**

**I will ask Manny. Manny, why is this girl here?"**

**The moon was visible in the window. It's light shone into the room, creating images on a stone circle in the floor. I couldn't make sense of the pictures.**

**"****Death needed a form...because you wanted a form."**

**"****What?"**

**"****In your last life, you asked Manny to give you a form. You weren't cold, you just had no love, and didn't know how to love. Death is naturally cold, but you, yourself, are not a cold person. You asked for a form so you could live amongst others of your kind."**

**I stared up at the moon. And memories flooded my mind. I remembered my last life, speaking with the moon. There was only one other person I had known in that life. My brother, Life. My twin.**

**"****Where's my brother? You promised! Where is he?" I screamed at the moon. These were the feelings of a past me, not myself.**

**The Guardians and Devilan looked at me strangely.**

**"****Where is he?" I yelled again.**

**I looked down at the stone circle. Images began to form. These ones I understood. My brother and I were supposed to be twins in this life, as well. My brother and I didn't want to separate. But my brother had been miscarried within my mother's womb.**

**"****Then where is he?" I asked again.**

**I saw a card. The card flipped over, and I realised it was a Tarot card. The picture on the card showed two mother's with children. The card was split by a line down the middle, separating the mothers and babies from each other.**

**"****We were still born at the same time, but to different mothers…"**

**The card took physical form, and I picked it up, putting it in my pocket.**

**Another card appeared and flipped. This one showed a girl and a boy, meeting some kind of chance encounter.**

**"****I'm going to see him again, soon!" I said with a cry of joy.**

**That card also materialised and I put it with the other.**

**The final card flipped. This one showed the same boy and girl, surrounded by mysterious shapes. One looked like it had bunny ears. Another held a strange staff. One had spiky hair, but it was far away from the others, on the edge of the card. It was closest to the girl. There were several smaller shapes, too.**

**"****We...are surrounded by loved ones?"**

**The card materialised. and this one I studied a bit longer before stashing in my pocket.**

**"****When will this chance encounter occur?"**

**A two, an X, and a seven appeared in a row, like a math equation.**

**"****Two weeks?"**

**In two weeks time, I'd have my twin brother back.**

**"****One more question. We don't have the same mother, but do we have the same father?"**

**The shape of a card appeared, then the moon's light was gone.**

**I pulled out the first card the moon had given me. I looked closer at the line, seeing it wasn't a line at all, but a shape. The shape of...my father's silhouette. There weren't any other figures on the card. Life and I had the same father. We were twins with different mothers.**

**""****Who is this brother of yours?" North asked.**

**"****Is it hard to figure out? Death's brother is...Life."**

**All of the Guardians stood as still as statues. Toothiana had even landed, and her wings were still.**

**"****You'll be smiling again," Devilan said in a rough voice. I looked at him, leaning against the railing a little ways away.**

**"****I've already been smiling again," I said quietly enough that only he could here. Well, maybe Bunny heard it too.**

**I glanced over. He had a sad smile on his face.**

**"****Not enough."**

**I didn't have a reply for that.**

**"****So, what kind of fun will we have today?" Jack asked me.**

**I blinked, noticing he was right in front of me, crouching and looking up to try to see my face.**

**"****Do you have any ideas. We went to the lake where you saved your sister. We went to the Warren. Let's try something else new."**

**An almost evil looking grin spread on Jack's face.**

**"****Come on, I know just the place."**

**He glanced at the other Guardians. All of them were nodding. Apparently we were all going.**

**All of a sudden, I was outside in the air, riding a snowflake.**

**"****Ugh, it's freezing out here," Bunny said.**

**"****Is it really?"**

**"****How can you say that? You're riding a snowflake!"**

**"****We're all riding snowflakes," I commented.**

**It was true. Jack had created a mini flurry to carry all of us. He used the wind to nudge people this or that way to keep us in the group. He spiraled past, and suddenly Devilan and I were stuck on the same snowflake.**

**"****Thank you."**

**"****What for?"**

**"****You're always patching me up after I get hurt. You're always looking out for me."**

**"****I told you I would."**

**"****I know. But, thank you."**

**"****No problem."**

**I looked over at him. He still had his cigarette. Somehow, it hadn't gone out. I don't know why it bugged me so much that he smoked, but it did.**

**Devilan threw an arm over me and pulled me next to him. My knees were to my chest, my arms in between. But Devilan pulled me next to him, close enough that our bodies touched. He leaned his head on mine.**

**"****Devilan…"**

**"****Shut up," he muttered softly.**

**"****What is it?"**

**"****Don't worry me like that ever again."**

**"****Huh?"**

**"****When you were fighting Sandy. You wouldn't fight back. You just kept dodging. I was worried."**

**"****I'm sorry…"**

**"****Be more careful next time, okay?"**

**He put his other arm around me and rested his chin on my head. I was tense in his arms.**

**"****It's alright. Relax. We're behind the others. Nobody is looking at us."**

**"****That's not the issue here."**

**"****What is?"**

**"****You're the first guy to hold me like this."**

**"****Well, it's not like you've been out much or anything."**

**I didn't know what to say to that.**

**"****If you want me to let go, just say so."**

**I hesitated before I let myself lean into his warmth. My muscles slowly relaxed.**

**"****See, this isn't so bad."**

**"****No."**

**"****You two are cute. And Devilan, you can stop getting jealous when she talks to me, right? We're friends. All there is to it," Jack said, suddenly popping up in front of us.**

**"****We're not together," I said simply.**

**"****You're not?"**

**"****You heard her," Devilan answered for me.**

**"****What are you doing then?"**

**"****He was worried about me, I was thanking him for something."**

**"****Dude, even I can figure out how to ask a girl out. I gave you the perfect opportunity."**

**"****It's not like that," he said, sighing. He let go with one of his arms and sat up straighter.**

**"****Let go," I whispered.**

**He released me completely, and I sat up. I crawled to the edge of the giant snowflake, and spread my arms out.**

**"****What are you doing?" Devilan asked as fear entered his voice.**

**"****Don't worry. I'll be right behind you all."**

**I moved my hips forward until I slipped off the snowflake. I would've been happy to fall into the cold that beckoned me, but someone caught my hand.**

**"****Devilan, let go," I said without looking back up at him.**

**"****No."**

**"****I'm not killing myself. Just let go. I'll be right back, I promise."**

**"****Where are you going?"**

**"****Checking something."**

**"****Checking what?"**

**"****I'll tell you when I get back. Let go."**

**He closed his eyes and did as I asked. I dropped through the sky. I was caught on a draft of cold that I manipulated into a slide. It took me down gently and quickly.**

**I stood up and started walking.**


	6. The Shadows of My Memory

**I went to Burgess Cemetery. If my mother's body had been buried, this would be the place.**

**"****Now, who could you be visiting in a cemetery?"**

**Startled, I spun around. I sighed in relief, seeing Devilan.**

**"****So, what are you looking for?"**

**"****It's none of your business."**

**He shrugged. "Just a question. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."**

**I sighed. "I'm looking for my mother."**

**"****She isn't here. Or in any cemetery. She was a being made of energy. Now she is part of the universe again."**

**"****I knew I probably wouldn't find her when I came. I just wanted to see. I wanted proof that I really did have a mother, until she was taken from me."**

**"****Alright. I can show you."**

**"****Show me what?"**

**"****You know how when people can only partially remember things, they call it the shadow of a memory? Well, I can show you the shadows of your memory. Your youngest years, until you were five."**

**"****You can really do that? That's allowed?"**

**"****Yes, I can, although it's technically not allowed."**

**"****You won't get in trouble, will you?"**

**"****Not with anybody that matters."**

**"****Alright. Show me."**

**The world melted around me, and I was put into another place.**

**"****__****It's a girl!" a person I didn't recognize called out as my mother leaned back onto the bed with a sigh.**

**__****No wails echoed, no sobs. The baby, who could only be me, was silent. This seemed to trouble the nurse.**

**"****__****Is she alright?" the nurse murmured.**

**"****__****She's perfectly healthy. My little angel," my mother said.**

**"****__****I'm not so sure. She's so tiny."**

**"****__****She was born prematurely."**

**__****The nurse carried me to another room, laying me in a bed. She covered me with a pink blanket.**

**My view in the vision changed. I was looking through someone's eyes. ****_My _****eyes, I figured out, seeing the light shade of the pink blanket.**

**__****Everything was a little blurry. But it was coming into focus. I could barely see into the next bed, but there was a face pressed against the glass side. The other baby had a darker colored blanket.**

**__****The baby was also quiet, like me, even among the others who screamed and screamed. He was bigger than me.**

**__****I made a sound, and the other baby's eyes did their best to focus on me. His eyes were different from each other.**

**__****I was lifted out of the bed and taken from the room. I cried, trying to reach back. There was something about the other child…**

**__****I was handed to my mother, and she held me for the first time. I was so small, I fit in one of her hands. She lay me on the bed beside her and just stared at me for a while. She had a pretty face, from what I could make out.**

**Images flicked faster, time passing. Then we stopped on another memory.**

**__****My mother gasped. I could see her much better.**

**"****__****Look at my little baby walking!"**

**__****I turned my head back to my father, who was waiting to catch me. I stumbled a couple more steps forward, then fell back on my butt. I sneezed.**

**__****My mother giggled.**

**"****__****Look at her. Isn't she just adorable?"**

**"****__****What have you called her?"**

**"****__****Fenri."**

**__****I got up slowly, trying not to fall again, and started walking closer to my father. I must have been around eight months old, but my size would indicate I was about half that.**

**__****When I finally reached my father, he picked me up, staring into my eyes. His eyes showed no love, only fear. My fear, reflected back to me. I hid my face and screamed y first word.**

**"****__****Momma!"**

**__****Pitch seemed surprised by my outburst, then handed me to my mother. Melissa really was beautiful. Flowing red hair, with white streaks. Black eyes flecked with green. Porcelain white skin. A beautiful smile.**

**"****__****She said Momma. Her first word, and she's crying out for me."**

**"****__****She's frightened of me."**

**"****__****She doesn't know you yet. But she will."**

**__****Then it was my first birthday. I was able to walk on my own, but I stumbled and fell a lot. I was walking after my mother, who walked slowly to wait for me. I tripped, and scraped my leg on the cave like floor.**

**__****A face appeared in the shadows of the hall. Then a whole body. A boy, much bigger than me, kneeled next to me. He pressed something against my injured knee, kissed it once, and melted back into the dark.**

**"****__****Momma?"**

**"****__****Don't worry, lovely. Just your friend. That was Devilan."**

**__****I got up and followed after her again.**

**__****My second birthday, my parents took me outside. I played at an otherwise empty park. My mother was in the bathroom while I stumbled up stairs and slipped down what my father called a slide. One of the times when I came flying down, I went off the slide. Pain shot through my elbow.**

**"****__****Daddy?"**

**__****He was instantly by my side. He picked me up and carried me to a low wall. He put a bandage on my elbow, kissed it, and set me back down on the ground. My mother came back, pulling a red wagon with her.**

**"****__****Want to go for a ride?"**

**__****I nodded as my father picked me up and set me inside.**

**__****My mother pulled me along, holding my father's hand with her free one. I sat in the front of the wagon, and I felt like someone had their legs around me, like I was being held.**

**__****I looked behind me, but only my shadow was there. I ignored the feeling.**

**__****It was my third birthday. I could walk without tripping, talk fluently when I wanted to, and run pretty fast for a three year old.**

**__****I opened presents, one from each parent. My father gave me a leather backpack, and my mother gave me a small device.**

**"****__****Do you think that's right for her age?"**

**"****__****She has to be able to defend herself. Best to start her young."**

**"****__****If you say so Melissa. Now, I have…"**

**__****He murmured in my mother's ear, and she nodded.**

**"****__****Come on, Fenri. Daddy has work."**

**"****__****Okay Momma."**

**__****I put the object in the backpack, and took my mother's hand as she led me away.**

**__****We walked through the East wing, heading for my room. Momma would stay with me until Daddy got back. But before we got to my room, we ran into another lady, and a little boy.**

**"****__****Pardon us. My name is Melissa. This is my daughter, Fenri."**

**"****__****I'm Tania, and this is my son, Farrell."**

**__****I stared at the boy in front of me. He had the same colors in his hair as me. White in back, red in front, and on all the sides for him, and black tips. He had shaggy, edgy hair that barely brushed the nape of his neck. He was wearing white knee sports socks, purple basketball shorts, a dark blue t-shirt, and a burnt orange hoodie with a half zip. His eyes were different from each other. One was purple with gold flecks, the other was blue, with white flecks. I might as well have been looking at my polar opposite twin.**

**"****__****You look like me," we said at the same time. We burst into laughter, collapsing on the floor.**

**"****__****We have somewhere to be, Farrell. It was nice meeting you both, but we must get going." The lady called Tania picked Farrell up, brushing my skin as she did. My mother reached down at the same time, brushing Farrell's skin. Then Farrell and his mother were gone, and my mother carried me the rest of the way to my room.**

**__****Half a year flashed by as my mother's condition worsened. The day came.**

**__****I sat by my mother's bedside, tears in my eyes. Her skin was pale gray, when she normally had a greek type complexion. She looked so weak. She couldn't raise herself off the bed. Her breathing was labored.**

**"****__****Momma? What's wrong? Why are you so sick?"**

**"****__****I...I don't know...Fenri." Her voice was a pained whisper.**

**"****__****You can't leave me."**

**"****__****I...won't. I'll...always be...right here," she whispered, struggling to raise her hand to poke me in the chest, over my heart.**

**"****__****No! You have to stay where I can see you!"**

**"****__****You'll see me...always. Anytime you...see your...reflection...I am there."**

**__****The tears started pouring down my cheeks. One landed on my mother's hand.**

**"****__****Don't cry, my sweet Fenri. You can not be like your father. You can't shut yourself off from the world. I will see you again. Do not fear, my darling."**

**"****__****I don't want you to go," I weeped.**

**"****__****Neither of us can stop that now," she said, her voice fading. I looked up at the bed, and her form was melting into the darkness. She, herself was fading. The last part of her to vanish was the hand holding mine. It rose into the air, reaching for me before it was gone.**

**__****I threw myself over the bed, weeping into the comforter. My mother had died.**

**My sight turned black, then slowly returned to the now snowy world around me.**

**I blinked, my eyes focusing on Devilan.**

**"****Did you...see?"**

**"****Yeah."**

**"****Was that you, in the wagon, sitting behind me?"**

**"****Yeah."**

**"****And it was my brother...Farrell. Because she touched him, it killed her?"**

**"****Right."**

**"****And...I probably killed his mother, Tania."**

**"****Right."**

**"****And that means…" My eyes widened in shock. I knew why I wasn't allowed in the West wing. It wasn't where my father worked. His office must be behind the forbidden door in between the two wings. I wasn't allowed in the West wing because that's where Farrell must be staying. Or, at least, he used to stay there. He may have moved out, and my dad keeps things the way they are for the memories. Like my mother's room. It hasn't changed in the slightest. It's covered in a thick layer of dust. I haven't gone in there since she died.**

**"****That means…?"**

**"****We can't follow the others tonight. We have to go back home, now!"**

**"****What? What's going on? Why do we need to go home so early?"**

**I glanced at the sky. It was grey with the dawn. I glanced to the East. Half of the sun was visible over the horizon.**

**"****It's not early," I said pointing. "We really need to get home."**

**He glanced over, and stumbled back in shock. He got up, grabbed my hand, and jumped into the nearest shadow. We were back in my room. A second later, there was a knock on the door.**

**"****Yes, Daddy?"**

**"****What are you doing, little Nightlock?"**

**"****I was getting ready to go take a shower."**

**"****Why? We both know you don't need showers."**

**"****No, but it helps me relax."**

**"****Is work stressing you?"**

**"****No. I just slept wrong. My muscles are sore from it."**

**"****Alright then. I'm going to make dinner. What do you want?"**

**"****Not…" I glanced at Devilan, and amended myself. "Actually, could you bring me some eggs, toast, bacon, and orange juice?"**

**"****You want an actual meal?"**

**"****Yeah. I leave whatever I don't eat outside the door."**

**"****Okay. I'll bring it and leave it on your nightstand for you."**

**"****Thank you Daddy."**

**"****Are you really going to take a shower?"**

**"****While you eat."**

**"****Oh. You asked for the food for me?"**

**"****Yeah. No way would I eat that much."**

**I walked into the bathroom.**

**"****Mind if I join you in there?" Devilan called.**

**"****Stay out," I growled.**

**"****It's not like I haven't seen you changing before."**

**"****You have no courtesy, do you?"**

**"****Kidding. I've averted my eyes for three centuries."**

**"****Yeah, right. I don't believe you."**

**"****Alright, in all honesty, I peeked once, on your fifteenth birthday."**

**"****That's it?"**

**"****I swear, on my life."**

**Considering I was the one who would take his life, there was no stronger swear he could make.**

**"****Alright. So why did you peek?"**

**"****Couldn't resist."**

**I raised an eyebrow.**

**"****Just you in your bra, I swear. After that I looked away."**

**"****Well, no, you can't come in here."**

**"****Are you sure?" he asked. I heard the bathroom door open and close.**

**"****Hey!"**

**A swimsuit was flung into the shower. I put it on, and Devilan stepped into the shower with me, still wearing his jeans.**

**"****What are you doing in here?"**

**"****Same as you. Relaxing."**

**"****Why are you in here with me?"**

**"****Because."**

**Like that was an answer.**

**He put his hands on my waist and pulled me closer to him.**

**"****Wh-what are you d-doing?"**

**His face was deadly serious. He stared deeply into my eyes, and I got caught in his gaze.**

**We were only two inches apart. Both of us were soaked, and hair hung in our eyes.**

**"****Are you scared of me?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Why are you shaking, then?"**

**Before I could answer, he licked my cheek. I was stunned speechless.**

**"****Are you nervous?"**

**I nodded.**

**"****Me too," he whispered.**

**He pulled me a little closer, and leaned towards me. Our lips were only a water droplet apart when my father called.**

**"****Fenri, I have you dinner! I'm going to leave it on your nightstand."**

**I turned my head and yelled back. "Okay! I'm going to stay in here a while longer."**

**I heard my bedroom door shut behind him as he left.**

**I turned back to Devilan. He was smirking, his hands in his wet pockets.**

**"****Mood ruined?" I asked.**

**"****Not at all."**

**He pulled his hands out, wrapped his arms around my waist, and pulled me to him, our bodies touching, our lips a paper width apart. Then he pressed his lips to mine hard.**

**As soon as he was there he was gone. I turned the water off, dried myself off with a towel, and changed into my regular clothes. My hair was still drenched, but I didn't care.**

**In my bedroom, Devilan was sitting on the floor, in fresh jeans and his leather jacket. His hair was still dripping. He didn't have a shirt on, just his jacket.**

**Devilan's yellow eyes met mine for a split second before he looked away.**

**"****I don't know what you're trying to do, but I don't like jerks."**

**"****Oh yeah? What kind of guy do you like, then?'**

**"****As annoying as they are sometimes, I like the cocky guys."**

**"****Aren't they jerks, too?"**

**"****Not in the same way."**

**"****Alright, so what kind of guy do you really like?"**

**"****Guys who don't have any kind of act. Guys who just be themselves. Is that too much to ask?"**

**"****Well, I hate to tell you this, but I am being myself."**

**I stared at him for a bit.**

**"****No. you're not."**

**I sat down on my bed and took off my charm bracelet. I tapped the orb and started working.**

**Devilan finished eating and put the mostly empty tray back outside the door. He sat behind me on the bed and held me like he had in that wagon. With his legs on either side of me, and his arms around my waist, I felt safe and warm.**

**When I yawned, I tapped the orb again, put the bracelet back on my wrist, and pulled Devilan's arms away so I could crawl to my pillows. I laid on my stomach, comfortable. I felt movement on the bed, and then I was under the covers, Devilan beside me, with an arm around me.**

**"****What are you doing?" I mumbled sleepily.**

**"****Being myself."**

**I mentally rolled my eyes and turned my head to face him. He hadn't put on a shirt, and he hadn't taken off his jacket. He'd just crawled in next to me. I reached out and put a finger on his chest. It still amazed me that I could touch him, and he was still okay.**

**Devilan grabbed my hand in his and held it against his chest, over his heart. The gesture made me smile. His arm around my waist pulled me closer, so we were nose to nose. He leaned forward, and started murmuring a lullaby in my ear.**

**"****_Won't you come out? We could paint the town red. Kill a little time, you can sleep when you're dead. Cause it isn't over yet. Get it out of your head. Chase a couple hearts, we could leave 'em in shreds. Meet me in the gutter. Make the devil your friend. Just remember what I said. Cause it isn't over yet. Just remember said. Cause it isn't over yet. Say you have a little faith in me. Just close your eyes and let me lead. Follow me home. Need to have a little trust in me, just close your eyes and let me lead. Follow me home, to where the lonely ones roam. Won't you come out? I've been waiting for you, holding my breath 'til my body turned blue. We've got everything to lose. Yeah, I'm waiting on you. Sun's come up and there's no one else around. Meet me in the shadows. Won't you tell me what you found? You've got everything to lose. Yeah, I'm waiting on you. Say you have a little faith in me. Just close your eyes and let me lead. Follow me home. Need to have a little trust in me. Follow me home, to where the lonely ones roam. To where the lonely ones roam. Roam with me. Come down to where all of the others fell. Get lost in the dark to find yourself. Just remember what I said. No, it isn't over yet. Say you have a little faith in me. Just close your eyes and let me lead. Follow me home. Need to have a little trust in me. Just close your eyes and let me lead. Follow me home, to where the lonely ones roam. To where the lonely ones roam. Need to have a little trust in me. Just close your eyes and let me lead. Follow me home, to where the lonely ones roam."_**

**I fell asleep to the lyrics of 'Where the Lonely Ones Roam' by Digital Daggers.**


	7. The Shadow Realm

**Three knocks on the door. I barely heard them. I was about to answer my father, when I remembered Devilan. If my dad came in here with him in the open, things would not end well.**

**I rolled over, panic waking me up. But Devilan wasn't beside me. Or anywhere else in my room that I could see.**

**"****Yes Daddy?"**

**"****The moon has already risen over the horizon. It's about time you woke up."**

**"****I'm up. I'll be out in a minute."**

**I heard very quiet footsteps leaving. I lifted the covers, searching in the dark, but Devilan was nowhere to be found. I got up, changed in my closet, made my bed, and walked out to the kitchen. I half-heartedly scooped a few bites of oatmeal into my mouth.**

**"****Are you alright, my little Nightlock?"**

**I shook myself and looked at his concerned face.**

**"****I'm fine. Just waking myself up. I'm going to go do some training."**

**"****That reminds me. I have your chosen weapons."**

**He reached under the table, pulled out a brown paper bag, and handed it to me. Inside were two sickles, with screw together handles so I could make a double sided, single weapon. They pulsed with a black energy.**

**"****Thank you. They're amazing. I'm sure I'll put them to good use."**

**"****Train, first. Then we will see."**

**"****Yes Daddy."**

**"****I must rest. I do not feel well today."**

**"****You aren't working today?"**

**"****No. I will be in my room."**

**"****I hope you feel better tomorrow Daddy."**

**He left, and, true to his word, went back towards his room, in my wing of the house.**

**I forced down another bite of oatmeal, and left the rest for Devilan, should he be around. Then I ducked through hallways and peeked around corners as I made my way to the West wing.**

**I went down the hall, going off my gut instinct. I stopped in front of a door. I lay down, looking through the crack at the bottom. The floor and all the furniture I could see were covered in dust, too. Not where I wanted to be. This must have been Tania's room.**

**I continued following the hallway, coming to another door. Peeking under, this one was a bit dusty, but not as much. It wasn't three centuries of dust.**

**I opened the door and walked in. It was obviously a boy's old room. But the dust had started to build up. Farrell had been gone for a while, at least. But I went through the drawers, the closet, and the bathroom. He'd only taken the most important things with him. Everything left behind were things you could get just about anywhere. But the outfits in the closet were all the same, and they all matched the little boy's who I'd met when I was four.**

**"****What are you doing?"**

**I swear, I jumped so high my hair brushed the ceiling.**

**"****Jeez. Sorry I said anything."**

**I turned, and there was Devilan, wearing the same thing he'd been wearing when I'd last seen him.**

**"****So, what are you doing?"**

**"****Where were you this morning?"**

**"****I woke up."**

**"****And?"**

**"****And nothing. End of story."**

**"****This is an unused room. End of story."**

**He rolled his eyes, and I walked out of the room, yanking Devilan after me. I closed the door, and walked back towards the courtyard.**

**"****Where are you going?"**

**"****Training."**

**My father had ordered a new supply of dummies, which was good, because I was tearing through them like each one had Devilan's head on it.**

**"****What's the matter with you?"**

**"****I hate emotions."**

**"****What emotions?"**

**"****Negative ones. Specifically, abandonment."**

**Devilan sighed. "Look, I didn't abandon you this morning. I let you stay asleep while I was busy because you get so little sleep and eat so little. I figured, if you were still asleep, you needed the rest."**

**"****You didn't think to leave a note, or wake me up long enough to tell me you were going?"**

**He shrugged and shuffled his feet. "I'm not as smart as you."**

**"****Who said I'm smart?"**

**"****Me."**

**"****Whatever, then."**

**When he didn't say anything, I looked behind me. He was gone.**

**The next shadow I stepped on, I sunk through. I didn't reappear anywhere I'd been before. I was in the Shadow Realm.**

**It wasn't very dark, but I didn't see any light either. It seemed that I should just be falling through the grey, but I was staying level with some kind of shape in the distance.**

**"****Welcome, welcome, welcome, welcome," whispered thousands of voices. They echoed each other, creating the word endlessly, going farther than I could hear.**

**"****Is the King here?"**

**"****Of course. We wouldn't have brought you if he wasn't." A single shadow answered me.**

**"****And the shape in the distance, that's his castle?"**

**"****Yessssss."**

**"****Is that where he is?"**

**"****You will find him in the gardens. Through the back door."**

**"****Thank you."**

**"****You're welcome."**

**I took a tentative step forward, and didn't fall through. So, I walked. The shadows helped me along. When the castle was beginning to take shape in the grey, a ladder appeared before me. I looked down at the top, and found I was ready to ride the longest shadow slide ever. It led straight to the front door.**

**I jumped onto the slide and shot down, taking corners so fast I almost fell off and doing loops in tunnels. It went faster than I realized. I was standing on the front step before I could count to thirty.**

**I raised my fist to knock, but thought better of it. I cracked the door open on silent hinges.**

**The entrance hall was deserted. I walked across and opened the door directly in front of me. That led to another hall, but it was much bigger and grander. Obsidian chandeliers hung from the ceiling. Black diamonds sparkled in the floor. Black lace curtains covered windows that I had a feeling were never used, and the rest of the walls were covered in velvet. The staircase in front of me looked like it was made of charred wood.**

**I didn't follow the staircase, although I was curious. I saw a door to the right of the staircase, and I jogged for it. It was locked. The door on the left opened. Through it, I saw a beautiful place. Black waterfalls, piles of jewels like they were flowers, and plenty of real, gorgeous flowers, all dark blue, dark purple, black, or dark green. Such dark colors, that at first glance, they all look black. Except for one plant.**

**A rose bush, in the very back of the garden, next to a balcony overlooking an empty, green field. The roses on the bush were bright blue, like the sky. I smelled one. The nectar was sweet enough that I might not drink it.**

**"****What are you doing here?" Devilan's voice sounded angry.**

**"****Looking for you. Your subjects are worried."**

**"****And they brought you here?"**

**"****That's right."**

**I could feel his eyes on the back of my head as he glared at me for moment before he let out a heavy sigh. "I guess, since you're here, you might as well stay."**

**I stood up from the bush and turned around. Devilan was standing at the edge of the balcony, looking down at the field, left hand on the wall. I took a place next to him, leaning on my arms over the wall.**

**"****Did you see the ballroom?"**

**"****It's beautiful. But I like it here better. It's peaceful, and even more gorgeous."**

**He turned his head and looked at me. I looked at him out of the corner of my eye. I noticed he was holding something in his right hand. A blue rose.**

**"****Thinking about someone or something special?" I asked, gesturing at the flower.**

**He glanced down at the flower, as if just remembering he was holding it.**

**"****Yes. Someone very special."**

**"****Who is it?"**

**"****I'll give you twenty-four yes or no questions."**

**"****Are they a girl?"**

**"****Yes."**

**"****Have you known her a long time?"**

**"****Yes."**

**"****Is she from here?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Is she from Earth?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Is she pretty?"**

**"****More ravishing than this garden."**

**"****Does she have a pet?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Is she nice?"**

**He laughed. "No, not really."**

**"****Does she like music?"**

**"****Yes."**

**"****Does she like to dance?"**

**"****Yes."**

**"****Does she play an instrument?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Does she like you?"**

**"****I don't know."**

**"****Do you like her?"**

**"****Yes, very much."**

**"****Does she have any siblings?"**

**"****Yes."**

**"****When was the last time you saw her?"**

**"****This morning."**

**"****Has she been here, in this garden?"**

**"****Yes."**

**"****Have you danced with her?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Does she wear dresses?"**

**"****Not that I've ever seen."**

**"****Does she have long hair?"**

**"****Not really."**

**"****Does she have short hair?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Is she very pale?"**

**"****Like a porcelain doll."**

**"****Oh dear. Is she one of those damsel in distress types?"**

**"****Far from it.**

**"****Does she still have both parents?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Does she have a pretty name?"**

**"****It's unique, and reminds me of the moon."**

**"****Do I know her?"**

**"****You should."**

**"****Is-"**

**"****Ah, nope. Sorry, you asked your twenty-four questions."**

**"****Do I get to guess who it is?"**

**"****Sure."**

**"****Is it my mother?"**

**"****No!"**

**"****Is it...is it me?"**

**Instead of answering, Devilan turned to face me, put an arm around my waist, and pulled me to him. He stared into my eyes and put the rose on the wall. He let his fingers play with my hair, until he rested his hand against the back of my head. Finally, when sweet temptation was about to overwhelm me, Devilan pressed his lips to mine, gently.**

**My arms curled up over his shoulders under his jacket. He pressed closer to me, and kissed me a little harder. I let my hands roam over his skin, feeling the lean muscle that covered him. Devilan kept kissing me.**

**I reached up, and touched the base of one of his horns. His whole body shivered, and I felt his tail flick against my legs. His horns felt kind of like the same material as hooves. The tips were sharp, but not in a way that I felt they were threatening.**

**I caught his tail as it flicked me in the legs again, and it was kind of strange. I could almost feel what it would be like if I had a tail.**

**The Shadow King moved so fast couldn't see him. Then he was gone. Vanished. One of many things he was good at.**

**I picked up the rose he'd left behind. It was in full bloom, and obviously well cared for. I put it in my hair and walked back into the castle alone.**

**I caught movement out of the corner of my eye on the stairs in the ballroom. I turned around and saw the end of a leather jacket disappearing around a corner. I ran after Devilan.**

**Every time I reached the corner where he'd just been, he was turning a corner ahead of me. The second floor of the castle was a maze of halls and doors. Finally, he went into a room, and when I came in, I scanned the walls, but saw no other entrances or exits.**

**The walls were all black, and there was a single window or lamp. A candle burned on a desk. A king sized bed was pushed into a corner. Another corner was occupied by easels and stacks of leather books. Half a wall had a ton of crevices occupied by scrolls. The corner opposite the bed was surrounded by tall objects, hiding what lay behind them. In the last corner, a spiral staircase went up to who-knew-where.**

**I peeked behind the tall objects, discovering another lit candle on a side table by a chair. The tall objects were huge shelves, completely filled with books. I scanned a few titles. They were all fictional. But, I didn't have time to stay. Devilan wasn't on this floor.**

**I went up the stairs as quietly as I could. They seemed too long for me to only be traveling up a single story. At the top, I found myself on the roof, inside a little, sheltered building. Devilan was at the railing, leaning over his arms and looking down.**

**His expression and position told me he was troubled by something.**


	8. MiM

**"****Devilan?"**

**He was startled, and when he looked at me, his eyes were wide. Wind blew his hair up out of his face, so I could see it clearly for the first time. He had some kind of mark on the right side. A pair of scars. Claw marks.**

**"****Fenri, what are you doing up here?"**

**The wind was picking up. It started blowing his jacket around, and his jeans smacked against his legs and waved in the currents.**

**"****I followed you."**

**I stepped out of door into the wind. It lifted my hair and tore at my clothes.**

**"****Go back inside. Go home."**

**"****I don't want to. I'm tired of having to play the perfect daughter. I'm getting sick of you just leaving at whatever time to try and run from your feelings, too!" I was beginning to have to yell to be heard. My hair was in my face.**

**"****Fenri, get back inside! It isn't safe for you here!"**

**I pushed my hair back behind me and glared at him. Then I forced myself to walk towards him.**

**I almost fell, but managed to catch myself. I got up again and struggled towards him.**

**The wind blew so hard, I was thrown, and it kept blowing. I was in open air and falling.**

**"****Devilan!" I screamed.**

**Arms wrapped around me from behind, and then we were being carried on the wind, soaring up and away.**

**"****I told you it wasn't safe," Devilan murmured in my ear.**

**I looked down, and I couldn't see the castle anymore.**

**"****How are we...flying?"**

**Devilan loosened one of his arms to grab my hand, then the other. He uncrossed his arms, spinning me so I was facing him, carried on the draft.**

**Devilan's entire appearance had changed. His hair was white, with black streaks, and longer, with layers and jagged edges. His skin was all black, but his eyes were still yellow. They glowed evilly. He had a white leather jacket on, with a high collar that came to his chin. He still had his blue jeans, but a large pistol was holstered to his side now. His horns glinted, sharp as any knife, and his tail had blue markings. But the biggest change were the black feathery wings that carried him.**

**Devilan crossed his arms again, bringing me back into his arms. He tightened his grip, holding me close.**

**"****What's going on?"**

**"****This is my true form as the Shadow King."**

**"****Why don't you look like this all the time?"**

**"****Because I don't want to be scary looking. I can look however I want on Earth and in my realm. A shadow of myself. But to see MiM, we have to be in our natural states."**

**"****What do I look like?"**

**"****Red and black striped socks, and a black school uniform with a blue tie. Your hair is the same. Your eyes are the same, but glowing. You're still as pale as ever. And you're holding your reaper's robes."**

**"****Wait, I'm wearing a skirt?" I looked down at myself. Sure enough, I was wearing a schoolgirl skirt. I was holding reaper's robes in one hand. My eyes cast a faint light wherever I was looking.**

**"****Oh, and I forgot one part."**

**"****What's that?"**

**He unwrapped me from his arms again, so that I was floating above him, as if I were trying to fly away from him while he tried to hold on. I felt something trying to catch the wind.**

**"****Your completely ruined wings that are the color of metal."**

**I looked behind me, and sure enough, shiny wings were attached to my back. But several feathers were missing, and one looked almost broken. I touched one. It was cold as ice.**

**"****Are you sure they aren't actually made of metal?"**

**"****Laced with metal, yes. But they're still feathers, or you wouldn't have ever been able to fly."**

**I let go with one hand and put on my reaper's robes. I would not be seen in a skirt ever again.**

**Devilan glanced up, grabbed my hand, and spun me back into his arms. He held me tighter than ever. I felt the sensation of us breaking through glass, and then hitting something hard.**

**I was laying flat on my stomach. The ground was white.**

**"****Fenri, get up."**

**I reached a hand back, and Devilan helped me get up. The ground had huge craters in it all over the place. The sky was black and filled with far more stars than you could see from Earth.**

**I took one step and nearly fell again, but Devilan caught me.**

**"****Careful. This is your first time on the moon. You're not used to it, or the travel to get here."**

**I took another step, leaning heavily on Devilan. I took a few more steps that way, until Devilan suddenly scooped me up.**

**He carried me across to the edge of the dark side of the moon. He jumped down into one of the craters, and I could hear his wings flutter as we came to a gentle stop at the bottom. Devilan walked forward into the pitch black, put me down, and knelt. I followed his example, falling to the ground hard.**

**"****You may stand, Shadow King. I've told you before that you need not kneel before me. We are equals."**

**"****It is good to see you again, MiM," Devilan said as he got up.**

**"****And you, my boy. Who is your company?"**

**"****Lady Death, herself. Also called Fenri."**

**"****Welcome to Moon, Lady Death. It has been a long time since you visited me here."**

**"****About three centuries, sir."**

**"****That's right. So, you do remember some things."**

**"****Yes. You know that already. I asked for my brother for a reason."**

**"****I'm terribly sorry for the separation. You were supposed to be born as twins again. There was only a two percent chance that your mother would miscarry either of you. Unfortunately, one of you was that two percent."**

**"****My brother."**

**"****Actually, you. You see, you were born prematurely, on the same day as your brother. Your brother was born on time."**

**"****So I was the one who was miscarried. And you brought my mother into the equation."**

**"****That's right. And I have already caused you to see your brother twice, both when you were very young. It was too dangerous to do it again, or your father would have noticed my interference. Instead, I created the opportunities needed for you to end up meeting him again in another twelve days."**

**"****You killed our mothers."**

**"****Wrong. Your touch killed your brother's mother, and his touch killed yours."**

**"****Why?"**

**"****It was destined to happen. I cannot control the Fates."**

**"****Those old ladies are real?"**

**"****You'll find that a lot of myths, not just Christian beliefs, are real."**

**"****What happened to me? My wings, I mean."**

**"****They were like that when you first came into my presence around the same time Devilan was born on Earth."**

**"****These particular bodies, they are only as old as we've been on Earth?"**

**MiM nodded.**

**"****Is God real?"**

**"****God with a capital g? No. One being does not control the universe. Gods, plural, with a lowercase g, that's an entirely different matter. There are many gods. Some people would consider you a goddess."**

**I had no answer for that.**

**"****What is amiss, MiM? You called me here for a reason?"**

**"****Yes, though not for any reasons you could think of. You are simply Lady Death's transportation."**

**"****Gee, thanks."**

**"****Not in that way. I'm sure Lady Death cares for you much more than that, but the reason for your visit was because I knew you would end up bringing her."**

**"****Why did you want to see me, sir?"**

**"****Lady Death, you do not believe you can be a Guardian, yes?"**

**"****I can't. I can not interfere. I can't choose sides."**

**"****But, by being a Guardian, you would be saving lives that shouldn't be lost in the first place."**

**"****You've got the wrong person. Call my brother here."**

**"****No. You see, you are your father's only weakness. And Pitch is going to come back, worse than ever, and he'll be bringing some friends."**

**"****My brother is a weakness of his as well."**

**"****No. Your brother tolerated your father as long as he could, but they didn't get along in any way. Your father trusts you, and believes you are his perfect child. He thinks you are his secret weapon. The question is, do you want to be that secret weapon, taking innocent lives before their time, or do you want to be his Achilles heel?"**

**"****He's my father. I will not take lives before their time. But I will not help to destroy what little remains of my family. I will not choose sides. I am neutral."**

**"****I see…"**

**"****Do not try to guilt trip me! I have my own principals, my own way of life, and my own rules. I am not one of your Guardians, nor am I an evil being of darkness. I will not change myself to fit in your box, nor in my father's box. I am outside of the box, and that is how I will stay."**

**"****Stubborn, aren't you? And what about you, Shadow King?"**

**"****I will not be Pitch's tool, even if I'm the Shadow King. But I am not the kind of person to be a Guardian. Children are afraid of the dark, and what lurks in the shadows. I will side with Lady Death and remain neutral."**

**"****As you wish. But know that I will continue to ask you both, in the case that you change your minds. Lady Death and the Shadow King would make deadly foes."**

**Wind shot from the crater behind us. Devilan wrapped his arms around me, spread his wings, and carried us off.**

**We arrived in the Shadow Realm. Devilan was just like he'd been before we left, except for his hair, which remained white and black.**

**"****I want to see your wings again."**

**Devilan blinked, and they spread from his back. They were beautiful, the color of obsidian. I touched one, and Devilan shivered again.**

**"****You're very beautiful."**

**"****No, you are. I'm just going to stick to being the hot, sexy, badass playboy."**

**"****I can agree with all of that, except for playboy. That is one thing you're not."**

**"****Oh yeah? And how do you know what I do in my spare time?"**

**"****Because you're with me almost all the time."**

**I glanced down at myself. No light was cast by my eyes, and my clothes were back to their usual comfort.**

**"****You know, you look pretty sexy yourself in that skirt."**

**A blush heated my cheeks.**

**"****Shut up! I hate wearing skirts!"**

**"****Well, you better get a dress and learn how to walk in heels."**

**"****Why?"**

**"****Because I'm going to host a masquerade, here. The Guardians are all invited. And a few others."**

**"****I'm not going to a ball."**

**"****Not even to see me? You'll get to dance with me. And, I was planning on having it in twelve days."**

**"****No."**

**"****Please?"**

**"****No."**

**"****Pretty please with gummy bats?"**

**"****No…"**

**"****Pretty please with gummy bats and me on top?" He murmured in my ear.**

**"****Alright! I'll come, okay?"**

**He just grinned and walked away.**

**"****Hey!" I yelled as I walked after him.**

**He stopped suddenly, spun around, and pulled me to him. My arms were around his neck, and his were around my waist. Our foreheads were pressed together. He smirked down at me, a glint in his eyes.**

**"****What are you doing?"**

**"****Dancing."**

**And Devilan guided me around the roof. The steps came naturally to me, even though I didn't remember ever dancing before.**

**When he was finished, he dipped me. After he pulled me back up, he kissed me gently.**

**"****See? It won't be so bad."**

**"****My brother can come?"**

**"****Of course."**

**Devilan took me downstairs, and I looked around the bedroom again.**

**"****Is this your room?"**

**"****Yeah. Kind of dangerous for you to be in here alone with me, you know."**

**"****That so?"**

**Standing in the middle of his room, I spun around, looking at everything. When I came back to Devilan, I stopped.**

**"****Are you scared yet?"**

**"****I'm Death. Not much scares me."**

**He stood there, just staring at me. On an impulse, I pushed his jacket off. His wings unfurled behind him naturally.**

**I touched one, and Devilan's arms wrapped around me. He buried half his face in my hair.**

**"****Do me a favor, would you?"**

**"****What is it?" I asked.**

**"****Don't ever leave me alone."**

**"****Then you can't leave me."**

**"****Will you be my girlfriend?"**

**"****And here I thought you were a playboy?"**

**He smirked. "You just love to tease me, don't you? Seriously, though."**

**"****Yes."**

**He let go, and I was lifted up, surrounded by shadows. Devilan gave me a mock salute, and then I was back in my room.**

**I did some work, crawled into bed, and just lay there for a while. I couldn't get comfortable.**

**"****_I'll keep you safe, as safe as I can. When all of the elements around us have other plans. I pray we don't break in unsteady hands. I swear if you call I will come so quick. I am at your command. As long as I live, as long as I'm breathing, you will be safe. As long as we're dreaming. Just close your eyes, everything's gonna be just fine. You can peek on the other side. Just close your eyes, everything's gonna be just fine. You can peek on the other side. You can peek on the other side. Say you'll keep still, as still as can be. Don't get caught in the chaos surrounding us. Trust that we're coming out clean. Cause I'm on your side, it's still you and me. When everything's falling to pieces and nothing is quite as it seems. We will be safe as long as we're dreaming. Just close your eyes, everything's gonna be just fine. You can peek on the other side. Just close your eyes, everything's gonna be just fine. You can peek on the other side. You can peek on the other side. We'll make it through this. I know that we will. You've got to be quick now. We're chasing up hill. I've got your hand tight in mine. Keep strong this time. Just close your eyes, everything's gonna be just fine. You can peek on the other side. Just close your eyes, everything's gonna be just fine. You can peek on the other side. You can peek on the other side."_**

**I didn't know this particular song, but Devilan's voice was soothing. I was asleep as soon as I felt his arm around me.**


End file.
